iFight For the Light
by Fictions of Legends
Summary: When Carly, Sam, and Freddie buy a new video game from a shady shop, just how crazy will things get when they try to play it? iCarly/Kingdom Hearts Crossover. Possible Seddie
1. Chapter 1

Summary: When Carly, Sam, and Freddie buy a new video game from a shady shop, just how crazy will things get when they try to play it?

Disclaimer: I don't own iCarly. Sadly, that's Dan Schneider. Otherwise I'd be hanging around with the cast all day. I don't own Kingdom Hearts either. That right goes to Square Enix and Disney.

iFight For The Light: Chapter 1

Carly and I laugh about Ms. Briggs little "mishap" with her bagpipes that I rigged to happen today. You see, I shoved a cork in the little air release at the top of the thing, so not only did Ms. Briggs have to use an incredibly insane—but hilarious; she turned purple—amount of force to blow the cork out, but when it _did_ fly out, it bounced off the wall and smacked her back in the face. Serves her right for messing with me. I mean, I did get detention for the bagpipe thing, but it was definitely worth it.

I take a quick glance at my watch. Freddie's almost late for iCarly. You know, it's funny—ever since our trip to Japan, he's been so much more…I don't know. My insults haven't been annoying him really; he's been less freakishly on time…It's kind of refreshing. He's sort of normaling out. There isn't too much geek for him to handle anymore, I guess. Not that he's lost his dorkiness, he's just taller now so it's spread out inside of him, unlike last year where it was practically oozing from his core. It's kind of like this one time that I popped--…nah, you guys don't want to hear about that.

Anyway, as refreshing as the little big dweeb's shining transformation's been, it was sort of creepy. It was just like this sudden change, and there's no rhyme or reason behind any of it.

Meh, I don't care. Just as long as he gets the—

"I've got it." The door slams as Freddie rushes towards us, grinning ecstatically with a bag in his hand. Speak of the dorkvil.

Carly and I stand from our beanbags. She tilts her head, looking at the bag and then to Freddie. "Got what?" she asks.

He holds up the bag and waves it a little in triumph. "The game we're gonna play on iCarly to raise money for charity."

Carly smiles and so do I. "Great!" she says.

"Awesome," I chime in, nodding. "So, what game are we playing?"

"Oh, you gotta see it," he begins enthusiastically. "I went _everywhere _searching for it. I can't believe not one game store in our area had it! Not even the Game Block in the mall, and they have _everything!_"

I roll my eyes. I can see Carly's getting annoyed, too, but she's too nice to say anything. Me, however? Not so much. "Get on with it, Fredward!"

"Okay!" he glares at me. "So, I finally found this one place. It was kinda shady, but I figured I'd look in there anyway. I go inside, and they have it! The place was a bit creepy, though, and the cashier—"

Oh, for the sake of ham! This boy's going to talk forever! I reach over and snatch the bag from him.

"Hey!" he calls in protest.

"Relax, Freddork, don't get your tighty-whities in a bunch." I roll my eyes and quickly pull the game box out of the bag.

"How did you know I was wearing those?!" he yells, looking somewhere between the lines of outraged and appalled.

I raise my eyebrow at him. "I didn't…"

Carly's staring at him with this horrified/grossed out kind of expression on her face and I'm just looking at the geek questioningly.

"Oh…I knew that," he rubs the back of his head and looks away. "I was kidding, too." Yeah, right.

I pause for a bit. "I owe you a wedgie for that," I smile. Then I look at the game in my hands and I feel myself automatically blink in confusion. "Kingdom Hearts?" I ask. I slowly look over to the dork with a disbelieving expression on my face. "Really?"

Carly smiles. "Oh! I've been wanting to play that for a long time!"

I nod. "Yeah, me, too, but _really_, Freddie? You? "

Freddie yanks the game back from me, glaring again. "It's a really good game, okay?"

"Yeah, but since when do you like things that we all agree are good?" I scoff.

"I like Carly," he shoots back.

"Yes, we know, and we all wish you didn't so you didn't have to keep reminding us of that day after day."

Freddie glared at me once again and I just smirked in return. Arguing with him was the highlight of my day.

He looked to Carly as if expecting her to say something in his defense. When she didn't, Freddie donned a hurt look.

"What?!" she cried. "The girl has a point!"

Noticing what time it was, I pointed hurriedly at the clock. "People!" I called. "It's showtime!"

Carly glanced up and grimaced. "Oh, no!" she shouted in distress and quickly looked to Freddie. "Freddie! Hurry!"

"On it!" He ran to the computer, punched in a few things and picked up the camera. "In 5, 4, 3, 2…"

We were on.

"Carly I am!" Carly said in a Yoda-esque voice as she hunched over and pouted her lips for emphasis.

"And Sam I am!" I said in the same tone and posture before returning to normal. "And though I've never tasted green eggs and ham, I'm positive I'd like it."

"She loves ham," Carly said in a goofy tone as she nodded to the camera.

"I do indeed," I gave one sharp nod. "It rhymes with some awesome stuff."

"But it rhymes with "sham!""

"But it _also _rhymes with Sam. Which is me. Which makes it automatically awesome."

"Awesome pawsome?" Freddie said smugly, trying to be cool from behind the camera.

"No, awesome shut-your-nub-face." I smiled.

He glared. "That was uncalled for!"

"So was your existence," I shot back.

"Okay!" Carly stepped in front of the camera before Freddie could shoot anything back. Not like he could think of a good comeback anyway. Another battle of words won. "We're doing something special for this episode of iCarly! Why don't you tell the fans about it, Freddie?" she smiled at him.

Freddie gladly turned the camera on himself. "We're going to be filming our play through of a video game for charity."

Carly got into his shot. "The Make-a-Fish foundation."

I grabbed the camera and turned it in my direction. "It's a charity for this shelter where kids learn how to prepare sushi. That's good stuff."

Carly grabbed the camera and turned it back to her and Freddie. "It is," she nodded.

"So today we'll be playing Kingdom Hearts!"

Carly took the camera and held it in front of her face. "We hope you enjoy as we play—"

"Or in Freddie's case, failing at attempting to play," I cut in.

Freddie growled. "Hey! I am a good gamer!"

"Yeah, yeah, tell that to my fingers up your nose."

"Ew! Sam! Get it out!"

Carly rolled her eyes at us, still on camera. "Sam, take your fingers out of his nose," she sighed. After a second and a headshake, she smiled again. "We hope you enjoy as we play—"

"Kingdom Hearts!" we all shouted at once as Freddie and I jumped into the shot.

"Switch to the B cam, Freddo!" I cheered as Freddie took the camera back.

"Switchin'" he called as he pressed a button on the computer. After placing the camcorder down, he put the disc in the game system so we could finally truly start the show.

-10 Minutes Later-

"Okay!" I shout at the camera.

"As you can see, our game system was experiencing technical difficulties," Carly smiles sheepishly.

"It kept spitting the disc out and then suckin' it right back up again," I say dully.

"But, now it's fixed!" Freddie flashes a half-smile.

I glare disgustedly at him. There's something about that smile that just sets me off. It's like, I see it…and then I want to punch something.

"We're sorry for the inconvenience," Carly smiles along right after. She turns to us. "So, let's get back to it, guys!"

"Yeah! Alright!" I cheer. Freddie "Woot!"s and then we take out seats.

After we go past the main menu and watch the totally cool opening, something catches my eye and I groan. "Uch, there are _words_ on the screen!" I whine.

Carly looks over at me and playfully shakes her head and rolls her eyes. "It's not _that _bad, Sam." She then turns to the dork. "Freddie, would you do the honors of reading the screen?" she asks.

"My pleasure," he smiles.

Uch, there's that feeling again. I glare, probably looking like I'm about to hurl when Carly gives me a "what's the matter?" look from next to Freddie.

I just shrug it off and look away, blankly.

"'Welcome to the world of shadows and light—where dusk and dawn meet; where good and evil exist as one in the same,'" Freddie begins. "'The door is still closed—'"

I turn around. "Looks like the door is wide open, to me," I interrupt.

"Your brain is wide open," Freddie mumbled.

"Your _mouth_ is wide open," I shoot back. "Now keep reading before something horrible gets stuck in it."

"Like what?" he asks loudly, challengingly.

"My _fist._" I finish the argument. Haha, the rightful order has been restored.

Freddie rolls his eyes and continues reading. "'Before you continue on your journey, we must know…how many players, and who are you?' …Uh, we are three," he inputs the data. "And, we are…Carly" --he types in her name— "Sam"—he types in mine—"Aaaand, Freddie." After he finishes typing, he squints with confusion at the screen. "'Tell us about yourselves, three…let all other players except for the selected player leave the room.' …Okaaaay.

"What is this, an online dating site?" I ask rolling my eyes.

Freddie shrugs and looks over to his left. "Looks like you're up, Carly." He stands.

"Okay," Carly laughs. "Wish me luck on whatever the heck this thing is, guys."

Freddie smiles genuinely, "Good luck."

"Psh, it's probably just some stupid survey." I wave it off.

Together we leave the room and wait for our respective turns. I notice that when Freddie and Carly return to the hallway, they're both wearing the same confused expression.

I raise an eyebrow in suspicion.

Freddie just nods, his expression still the same. "You'll see," he says.

And then I tilt my head as I walk into the studio, preparing to answer my questions.

I sit down. "Okay, let's get this over with," I say as I grab the controller. I roll my eyes. Of _course _Freddie gave me a boy character. He _still _doesn't get that I'm a girl. I'm going to get him for that. I'm not sure how yet, but I'll think of something. Stupid dork.

So, my character is dressed in black, blue, and red has spiky hair, and big shoes. I look at my own feet. What's the geek trying to say here, huh?

I walk forward and approach a girl sitting on…what looks to be the railings of a ship.

I talk to her. She asks, "What's most important to you?"

My eyes roll. Aw, great, a multiple choice test. Just what I wanted on a Friday.

It's then that I realize we're still filming. I look up at the camera, grin and wave for the folks at home and then turn my attention back to the screen.

The choices that appear on the screen are, "Being number one," "Friendship," and "My prize possession."

I smirk as I bring the cursor to "Being number one," but then, I really stop to think about it. My smirk falls, and so does my cursor. I press select on "Friendship."

Yeah, yeah, I'm a softy, alright? But really, can you blame me? Without these guys, where would I be today?

And by "these guys" I mean Carly and Spencer. Not that stupid nub.

…Okay, alright, fine, Freddie, too. I roll my eyes. Boy, the people watching this must be getting bored. I look back at the camera. "Sorry, folks!" I yell. "We're just getting a bit of introductory chiz out of the way, and then we'll be on the move." I do a little dance before turning back to the screen.

The girl answers, "Is friendship such a big deal?" …Dude, were you _listening_ to a word I _said_?

I approach the next person—a tanned-skinned boy, standing on some stairs with a ball in his hand. He asks, "What do you want outta life?"

This should be interesting. The choices flash on the screen: "To see rare sights," "To broaden my horizons," or "To be strong."

I roll my eyes again. This is too easy. My cursor moves to the last choice. Being strong is everything. It's who I am. I'm Sam, the strong one of the group.

But…if that's what I have already…why would I want it? My eyebrows furrow in confusion. I decide, for simplicity's sake, to choice the choice right above it.

After I get a completely useless response from the tan dude—"To broaden your horizons, huh?"—I move onto some kid standing in the corner. The ocean behind him looks so nice…like something you'd see on a tropical island. And it's just now that I take notice of the sound of the waves crashing in the background, and of the seagulls overhead. It _is_ a tropical island…

The boy has this vibrant hair and…a life jacket on? I'm suddenly reminded of Freddie. Only he would look that dorky on a Tropical island. I purse my lips and sigh. So, I talk to ol' Freddie Junior, and he asks me, "What are you afraid of?"

I gulp. I don't like talking about my fears. That exposes weakness. So…I guess I'm afraid of fear, huh? Well, that's not one of the choices. My choices are: "Getting old," "Being different," and "Being indecisive."

I frowned. I know I did. Because the typical "me" answer would be the first one. But…as much as I take pride in it, I'm kind of afraid of being different, too. I mean, most people seem to bypass me and go straight to Carly and Freddie to talk to for that reason. Because I'm different. I couldn't decide. Well, I guess that settled my question! I just picked the last choice, haha.

"Being indecisive? Is that so scary?" I blinked. If only these characters could hear my internal conversations. Suddenly, a cut-scene was activated.

I unconsciously read aloud. "'You value friendship, you want to broaden your horizons, you're afraid of being indecisive…Your adventure begins at dawn…'"

I rolled my eyes and groaned. "Aw man, I'm not a morning person!"

The game told me to call the other players back in the room. Once Carly and Freddie entered again, I told them of my results.

"You got dawn?" Freddie grumbled. "I got night. I'm no night owl…"

I shrugged. "I'm not a morning person."

"Can't we just trade?" he asked.

"Sorry, no dice, Freddo. Game won't allow it," I answered.

He groaned.

"Wow," Carly said quietly. "Looks like I'm in the middle of you two again. I've got midday."

Freddie and I both glared at her.

"What?" she asked.

"Don't make us trade controllers with you," I threatened, and then smiled.

She laughed and then we all took our seats. "Alright, iCarly viewers! It looks like things are finally warming up! So now—"

"Guys…" Freddie interrupted with a concerned tone.

"What, Fredweirdo? Don't you got any matters? You're not supposed to interrupt people." I thwacked him in the back of the head.

"Ow! He rubbed his head where I hit it. "The game! It's moving forward!"

Carly and my eyes widened and we looked back at the game. Carly, sensing it was her turn to read aloud, did so.

"'The day you will open the door is both far off and very near…'"

"Stupid cryptic jank," I rolled my eyes.

Freddie hit me in the arm and shushed me.

"'But until then…'" Carly continued. "'Why not get a closer look at the world you will now call your…home…'" She blinked. "What's that supposed to—whoa!" Carly lunged forward.

Freddie was immediately at her side. "Carly! What's the ma—ah!!" the same happened with the dork.

"What are you all doing?!" I yelled as I stood. I suddenly felt myself being pulled further.

"We're being pulled towards the TV!" Carly yelled in a panic.

"Well, hold yourself back!" I shouted.

"No…guys," Freddie spoke calmly, and blinked. "I think we're supposed to go with it…." He walked forward. Well…not really walked, more like "was pulled" forward. Then, he was flung back into his beanbag, his eyes closed.

"Freddie!" Carly yelled in dismay.

"That stupid nub!" I yelled, still trying to hold myself back.

"Sam, we gotta go after him," Carly insisted.

"What?! I asked. "Are you crazy?"

"Maybe," she said silently. "But Freddie's my friend and right now, he looks like he's in trouble. I'd do the same thing if it were you."

"Carly, this is insane!" I shouted, trying to change her mind.

"I'm letting go, Sam," she said quietly. "Hopefully, I'll see you on the other side."

"Carly—" I tried once more, but at that moment she hit her own beanbag, unconscious.

I groaned. "Darn my stupid conscience!" I yelled as I let my control slip. I felt myself hit the beanbag and then felt the strange sensation of flying…that's when it all went black.

--

**AN: Sheesh that was long! Sorry about that, guys. Had to set up a few things though. Yep, this takes place somewhere in the current, season 2 timeline of iCarly =) Obviously I changed a bit of Kingdom Hearts stuff for this. For example, in the game, you can ONLY play as Sora. But in this one, you can have multiple players and play as multiple characters. If you couldn't guess, Sam is Sora in this case, and this is all from Sam's POV. Might wanna remember their starting-times for their adventure, could be significant for each of them -winkwink- Anyway, hope this was IC, and I hope you enjoyed. =D Until next time, everyone!**

**-Fictions**


	2. Chapter 2

Summary: When Carly, Sam, and Freddie buy a new video game from a shady shop, just how crazy will things get when they try to play it?

Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah, iCarly and Kingdom Hearts aren't mine. I'm not rich and amazing, okay?

iFight for the Light: Chapter 2

Darkness.

That's all I saw, and all I heard. Okay, well, you can't exactly _hear_ darkness. What I heard was silence. But it was different than just regular silence. It was…sad. Scary. It felt cold and empty.

I am _not _afraid of the dark, all right? That's just how it felt. All of a sudden, there's this strange whispering…

It was echoed, but I could hear it just fine. It said something like, "Hair of blonde, and eyes of blue, the one who will open the darkest door…will be you…" And then it just drifted away…

What in the name of spherical meats was _that_?!

_What _darkest door? What do I have to do with _any_ kind of door?

Thanks, Freddork, you got us a game that knocks you unconscious, sends you into a weird world of darkness, and makes you hear strange whispers. You should win Friend of the Year. Really.

I rolled my eyes, or at least, I think I did—I couldn't really feel anything. It was like my mind wasn't really where my body was—Freddie and Carly probably weren't stuck in this darkness.

They were probably some place nice and Freddie was leaning over her, making sure she was okay, or something. And Carly would push him away, like normal, but still, he'd wait on her hand and foot, and give her anything she wanted—do anything it took to make her happy…besides stop stalking her, that is. Stupid dork. And…sort of stupid Carly, too. I mean, I wish that I had--…

Never mind.

It's a stupid thought. I must've hit my head pretty hard, that's all. Especially now that I'm hearing seagulls.

…Whoa, wait, seagulls?

I listen closely, realizing that I seem to be regaining control of my senses again, and hear the sound of squealing overhead. Yep, definitely seagulls.

Aw, man, I hope none of them leaves me with a little gift before I fully regain consciousness. Well, maybe I can wash it off in the water.

Wait, water? How did I…? Oh, yeah, there's the sound of waves crashing, too. This sounds…vaguely familiar…

Finally, my eyes begin to flutter open. I'm staring up at a bright, nearly cloudless blue sky. Talk about pretty as a picture.

"_Sam!"_

I hear my name being called in the background…

"_Sam!"_

But I can't turn away. Maybe it's because I'm lazy…

"_Sam!!!"_

Or maybe it's because I've never ever seen anything this beautiful before…

"Sam!!!" the calling sounds at full blast.

I jump up and turn around causing sand to fly everywhere. Apparently, I was on a beach. I looked to my left, at this big wooden ship-like area. On the top of a platform is Carly, in a pink dress and pink converse calling my name and waving. "Carls!" I smile as I run to the bottom of the platform.

She climbs down the ladder and flicks me in the head. "I've been callin' ya for fifteen minutes, you lazy fudgebag!"

"Ow." I rub my scalp, scrunching my hair as I do so. "I'm a heavy sleeper, what do you want?" I said in defense.

"Yeah, I've noticed," she purses her lips and then smiles, laughing. "Hey," she says, looking me over. "I like your outfit." She waves a finger up and down to gesture to my clothing.

I look down. I'm wearing the same clothes my character was wearing. Only, my pants aren't quite so poofy and my feet aren't bigger than their normal size. Thank ham. I nod. "Yours, too." I look over again. "Is that what your character was wearing?"

"Yeah," she confirms.

I roll my eyes. "Typical Freddie."

Carly laughs, crossing her arms. "Sam Puckett, are you jealous?"

I cringe and raise my eyebrow. "How hard did _you _hit your head?" Seriously, Carls, you're usually smarter than that.

She gives me a lop-sided frown and a playful shove. "Come on, let's go try to find Freddie. He's probably here, too."

I groan and whine. "Do we _have _to?"

"Sam," she turns around to me sternly, with her hands on her hips.

"But it's so nice here without him!"

"_Sam,_" she uses her mothering voice.

"Okay, okay, _fine_." I give in and begin to walk.

We don't even have to walk too far because all of a sudden we hear a groan. We run to the right to the foot of a massive tree house. "Why'd it have to be heights…?" I hear the geek faintly say.

"Freddie!" Carly calls up and waves.

Freddie looks down, spots us, and smiles. "Carly! Sam!" Suddenly, he dons that stupid smirky-half-smile again. "I like your outfit, Carly."

Carly looks down at herself, looks up, shocked and appalled and puts a hand over her chest.

I roll my eyes. The stupid nub just can't miss an opportunity to make a doofus out of himself, can he?

"Sorry…" he calls out slightly. Looking around, he changes the topic. "I need help getting down!"

I spy a flight of stairs to his left, which will begin to lead him down, but I don't mention it. Instead I smirk, and then quickly cover it up, standing directly below him. "Just jump, dork!"

"What?!" he calls back as if I'm insane.

"Just do it!" I yell, angrily, and put my arms out.

He makes a worried sound and then caves. "Alright…" Freddie climbs over the railing and leaps.

I swiftly move out of the way before he hits the ground.

Freddie cries out, I snicker, and Carly yells my name.

The dork's all right, though. He jumps to his feet immediately and has his finger in my face. "Why did you do that?!" he growls.

I shrug. "Well, you were crazy enough to let yourself be knocked unconscious by the shady video game you just bought, so I figured you might be crazy enough to believe that I'd catch you, too. Guess what?" I asked as I stepped closer to his face and grinned. "You were."

He yells this unintelligible stream of sounds, like he doesn't exactly know what to say. "That could've killed me!"

"But the concrete broke your fall!" I retort.

"Guys!" Carly breaks us up by standing between us. "We have to figure out why we're here and what we're gonna do about it!"

"Before that, we should figure out where 'here' _is_," speaks the peanut gallery. Or should I call him the _dork_nut gallery? Haha…dorknuts, part of your balanced breakfast.

"Isn't it obvious?" I ask as I take a seat on the platform that juts out from the sand to where we're standing now. "We're inside the game."

"What?" It's Carly who asks, and I hear her feet shuffle closer on the gravel of the ground. Her voice is quiet, but she's in shock.

"How do you know?" Freddie asks and I can just _hear _the disbelief in his voice. What an idiot. Doesn't think I can get _anything_ right.

I roll my eyes before turning back to them. "The pirate ship thing. It's the same area where you had to answer questions about yourself," I gesture to it, shaking my head like it's obvious and flash a fake smile, turning back around.

Carly must've looked over. I heard the gravel crunch under her feet as she walked closer to the platform she had come down from. "Oh, yeah…" Carly, you're the only person I know who gets _quiet_ when they're in shock. Actually, she's not usually like that either. Maybe she's just so freaked that she went in reverse.

"Then we were meant to come here…" I hear his low voice mumble.

"_What_?" I ask, turning around slowly, with a look of disbelief of my own on my face.

"We were meant to come here," he says again, nodding in between his words.

I hop up and walk towards him. "We were _meant_ to come here?" I throw my hands in the air. "What are you _talking_ about?! You _are_ crazy!"

"Everything happens for a reason!" I hear him shout as I turn my back.

"Oh yeah!" I yell. "Sure! Of _course_ everything happens for a reason!" I turn around, hands raised in the air. "Hey, Freddork, can _you_ find a reason that you bought this stupid game? Can _you_ find a reason that we were sucked up inside of it? Can you find a reason why I'm hearing whispers telling me that I'll open some dark door?! Can you find a reason why you're the stupidest smart person I've ever seen?! Because I can't!"

Freddie raised an eyebrow, hands in his pockets. "You're schizophrenic? That good enough?" He walked closer to me and stuck out his finger. "And that last one was completely uncalled for!"

"Yeah, so was your fashion sense," I roll my eyes. "And I dunno, I think it was a pretty good and justified question."

It's then that the dork seems to realize he's just in his blue plaid button-up shirt and jeans (the same outfit from that time where Lewbert tried to date his mom.) "Hey," he looks at us and then at himself. "How come you guys have cool new clothes but I don't?"

I narrow my eyes and say, "Because you and cool don't get along."

"Guys, wait a minute!" Carly calls out. "Sam, you said something about a door?" she asks, turning to me.

I shrug. "Yeah, the darkness door or something."

"Well, don't you think you should _find _it?" Carly asked, sticking out her tongue.

I look up in thought and then shrug again. "Yeah, I guess we could split up to look for it."

Carly smiled. "Alright, cool, then we'll meet up on the dock afterwards."

"Sounds like a plan," I nodded as we began to walk off.

"Wait," his voice stopped me. "I…don't think this is such a good idea," he hesitantly said as we turned back around to face him.

"What, Mr. This-is-all-meant-to-be is having second thoughts?"

"Guys, I'm just saying. Darkness in games is not usually such a good thing. Maybe we should be cautious, and, well," he tiled his head and looked off to the side, as if embarrassed by his thought. "Sit this one out."

I donned a fake smile as I looked up again, walking towards him, my gesture indicating just how stupid I thought he was being. "Ya know, it's weird—you're okay with getting sucked into some strange game but looking for a _door_ you're scared about?"

His face turned angry. Oh yeah, definitely embarrassed. "I'm not _scared, Sam._"

"Ohhhh, really?" I asked, getting fully in his face. "'Cause your red cheeks are beggin' ta differ."

His glare intensified and he looked into my eyes. There…was something about that look he gave me—and I'll never admit this out loud—that made me get…kinda weak in the knees. I looked startled and down at myself in shock. Darn it! I broke the stare!

When I looked up, Freddie was looking at me with an eyebrow raised in confusion, and then he smirked slightly. It was my turn to glare.

Carly cut the silence with an awkward, "Uh…guys? Shouldn't we go look now?"

Taking any opportunity I had to get away from the situation, I nodded. "Right there with ya, Carls." I walked to her and the dork tried to stop us again.

"But, don't you—"

I interrupted. "Look, dweeb. You can't believe some things are meant to be and not others. It's all or nothing, okay? So which is it gonna be?"

I heard him huff and then suddenly, he was walking with us.

Carly smiled a bit sadly. Aw, Carls, come on. We're never going to _completely _get along. Going to have to just settle for what you got. "So, we're clear that we're meeting up by the dock, right?"

We both nodded in agreement.

"By sunset sound good?" I asked.

"The sooner the better," I heard the geek mumble.

Carly laughed nervously, "I'll take that as a 'yes.'"

I shrugged. "Have a feeling that's about as good as we're gonna get anyway." I walked off at this point, but I'm sure I heard Carly talking to Freddie after I left. Something about how I don't really mean it or whatever. Don't you know me better than that, Carls?

As I was walking, really not looking for anything to be honest—I was just enjoying the sights, like the waterfall I was now approaching—I spotted this…hole in the wall of rock to the left of it.

I raised my eyebrow at it, curiously. Wonder if there are any animals in there I can try to put down Freddie's pants. I decided I would go check. Kneeling down, I cleared the bit of plants blocking the entrance to the cave out of the way. I took one cautious look around inside before I began crawling in.

--

**AN: So there's chapter 2, guys. Hope you like it. I hope it was in-character and didn't end too abruptly. I've got something kinda big planned for the next chapter so…I wanted to end this here. Although, now, the next chapter may end up being really short…well, we'll see, right? By the way, in case you didn't realize, Carly is dressed as Kairi. Both Sam and Carly are both in Sora and Kairi's outfits from Kingdom Hearts 2. I remember when I was planning this story, I just pictured Sam in Sora's outfit, and it just looked…pretty awesome, and then Carly just **_**belonged**_** in Kairi's outfit. Before you ask, no it's not **_**that**_** kind of fic. Sam and Carly are not going to get together. If anything, it'll be Seddie =) Also, Freddie's not in Riku's outfit because…picture it—it'd look stupid XD That's all for now!**

**Thank you so much for all of your kind reviews and story-alert-adds! Again, I really hope you enjoy and keep reading and reviewing!**

**-Fictions**


	3. Chapter 3

Summary: When Carly, Sam, and Freddie buy a new video game from a shady shop, just how crazy will things get when they try to play it?

Disclaimer: If I owned these two fandoms, iCarly and Kingdom Hearts, would I really be writing this on …?

iFight For the Light: Chapter 3

This tunnel was deep.

And when I say "deep," I mean it. I feel like I've been crawling for about fifteen minutes—it's insane. I'm sure if I were to look back, I wouldn't even see the light pouring in from outside anymore. Not that I _can_ look back. This tunnel's so tight there's no way of turning around. Guess that means the only way to go is forward, right?

I finally reach the end of the tunnel. I'm not outside again, but rather in a pretty wide cave. But there's standing space now, so I decide to use it. Stretching my legs and standing up, I try to observe my surroundings to see just where I am.

There's sand covering the ground, but I can't hear any of the noise from outside—no seagulls, no breeze, no waves. All I can hear is this strange buzzing—no, humming—and echoing silence. It's the kind of sound you hear when you're near one of those old refrigerators or something.

That sound coupled with the darkness of the whole area—let me tell you, I'm not easily freaked out, but even _I _wouldn't want to be alone in here for too long.

I turn my head and it's then that I notice there are these white chalk drawings on the wall. I step closer and I feel my mouth gape open a little when I can truly see them clearly. All of the drawings are of things I remember.

The first two that catch my eye make me smile. One's of me, Carly, Freddie, and Spencer standing in front of Spencer's sculpture to have our picture taken for the Jonas Book of World Records. The second one is of me and Carly laying down, with our feet to the camera while Freddie tilts it, making it seem like the families we'd drawn on our toes were experiencing an earthquake.

I moved a little to my left. Hah! I remember this one! It's when the nerd had a spider on his face and I slapped him so hard he fell over. You know, I really didn't put that much force into that. Dork's such a weakling. But, it _is_ Freddie, so why am I surprised.

The next couple of drawings really catch my eye. And the memories are so vivid, I could replay the whole situation in my mind if I wanted to.

I trace my fingers across the wall, over the pictures. Even if they do get smudged, I remember them all too well to forget just because a drawing of it is gone.

The first vivid one's of Freddie, Gibby, Carly, and I in the iCarly studio. Gibby was angsting over not winning a date with Shannon. And Freddie was trying to reassure the poor boy that no matter what, he wouldn't go after her.

"_I'm in love with someone else."_

I'm not sure why, but I felt myself frown at the remembrance of Freddie's exact words. My frown only deepened when I saw my expression in the chalk drawing—it was a look of disappointment.

I mentally scolded myself. What was wrong with me? Why do I get upset or angry whenever Freddie talks about love or anything like that? I glared. If there was anything I hated besides dorks and Freddie's face, it was confusion. Sliding my finger across the wall, I decided it'd be best to move onto the next memory.

The next memory was of me in my kissing booth that I had set up to win my kiss from Shane before Carly could get hers. Freddie had stood before me in that time and it was just then that I noticed he was there and how, at least I thought, he was looking at me. I sternly told him off.

"_Don't worry, I don't wanna kiss you."_

My heart dropped a little. Come on, wall, where are the happy memories at?

Well, that _was_ a happy memory, wasn't it? The dork had just told me he didn't want to kiss me. Good to know the feeling was mutual. I shoved a smile onto my face and moved to the next drawing, my whole hand sliding on the wall, now.

This one I really could smile at. It was of Carly, Freddie and me winning the iWeb Awards in Japan. The three of us held the award high above our heads as we all wiggled in a little victory dance.

The next picture was of Carly standing off a bit to the side. Freddie was turned to me and poking me playfully in the stomach talking about how he saved the day with his "Freddie-tech magic." I giggled at the thought, my hands actually flying to my belly as if the event were happening now, but quickly silenced and righted myself.

The next drawing was just of me and Freddie, still at the awards. I went to give Freddie a congratulatory hug, but at that moment, he pulled me tightly into his arms, even lifting me off my feet a little. I was shocked, but--…

I'd never seen him do that before. Well, we didn't hug much. I'm not really a hugging gal. But I'd never seen him do that with _anyone_—not even Carly. Not like _that_.

My hand rested there for a moment, and I felt my face soften. I was giving an uncontrollable and unexplainable warm smile. For the first time since I'd been on the island, I felt the emptiness left from the darkness from before truly leave me.

The strange glowing happiness didn't last long, though. The smile on my face fell and I began to look around. There were more chalk drawings, but I could already guess that they were just more memories of mine. The question was, why? Why were they here in the first place? Why did so many of them—_all of them_—include the dork? "Who drew these…?" I actually asked aloud to no one.

Or at least I _thought_ it was to no one.

Suddenly, there came a chuckle from behind me, and I whirled around as fast as I could. In front of me stood some guy in a black cloak. "You foolish girl," a familiar voice, hidden behind a hood began. "You did, of course."

"What are you talkin' about, buddy?" I asked.

"They are your memories, are they not? You put them there." Why does that voice sound so familiar? I can't put my finger on it…

I decided not to respond to that because…well, there really wasn't anything to respond with. Instead I decided to ask a more important question—or two. "Who are you? What are you doing here?" I asked, getting into a subtle fighting stance. Creeps wearing black robes weren't usually all about hugs and puppies. Unless they were stalkerish hugs and nailing puppies to a wall.

The cloaked dude walked closer to me. I readied myself further, clenching my fists. "I've come to see this world's door. It's been connected, you see, with the darkness."

I paused, looking off ahead of me. "The darkness…" I mumbled out, remembering the feeling of being trapped in the cold emptiness from when I had awoken on the island.

"Yes, precisely," the figure with the familiar voice nodded. "And it's soon to be completely swallowed by that darkness."

I shook my head. I sort of understood what he was talking about but I didn't _want_ to. I didn't want to believe that this beautiful, peaceful island—that the people on this island, that my friends—would be swallowed up by that cold, empty endless dark. "What are you talking about?" I ask.

"You understand so little," the voice chuckles.

"Well, yeah I understand little! No one's explaining anything! How am I _supposed_ to?!" I yell back.

"Explaining it would be meaningless," he shook his head. "One who knows nothing can understand nothing."

That was it. This cloaked guy was getting a punch in the face. I quickly stepped forward. "Look, pal, I dunno what you're talking about—"

"Careful, Sam," the familiar voice cautioned. "You wouldn't want all these precious memories—" he gestured to the walls around us, and I followed his gesture with my eyes— "to disappear, would you?"

My face fell. I was no longer angry. I was actually a little--…no I wasn't scared. I was just a little shaken that anyone would stand up to me and threaten something so specia--...intangible.

I moved back, and placed a hand on the wall, unconsciously protectively and then looked back to it. My hand had landed just next to the drawing of Freddie hugging me. My face fell even more.

"Trust me, Sam Puckett," the voice audibly smirked. "When the time comes, you should just give in to the darkness. Don't fight it like you were just about to—the consequences would be quite severe. I assure you…" The figured shuffled closer on the sand. "You would definitely rue it."

No way. I turned around as quick as I could, but he was gone. _That's_ why that voice sounded so familiar. But why would _Nevel _be _here_?

--

**AN: Okay, I know this chapter was incredibly short. It was even shorter than I expected. I originally planned to get much further in Chapter 3, but I figured that that was just a really good place to end this one. Don't worry, I know exactly how the next few bits will turn out and I plan to write them as fast as I possibly can. Seriously, sorry not much went on here, but I still hope that you enjoyed it nonetheless. Thank you all again for your author watching, story watching, favoriting, reading and reviewing! I really can't explain how much it means to me, and you should all know that's what keeps me going—your feedback, knowing that I have fans and you guys actually like this stuff =) So keep it up, you all! Hope you're well. If I can't write before then, Merry Christmas! And Happy Channukah! And every other holiday! And Happy New Year (though I'll definitely have more written before then XD)**

**-Fictions**


	4. Chapter 4

Summary: When Carly, Sam, and Freddie buy a new video game from a shady shop, just how crazy will things get when they try to play it?

Disclaimer: Last time I checked, I was neither Dan Schneider, nor Tetsuya Numaru. In fact, last time I checked, I wasn't even a boy. –Checks again- nope, still a girl. So, I don't own iCarly and I don't own Kingdom Hearts.

iFight For the Light: Chapter 4

Okay, so Nevel was here. That was oddly one of the weirdest occurrences of the day. I decided I'd better get out of the Geek Cave because knowing my luck the way things have been going today, Freddie, Germy, and Gibby were likely to just appear at any second. Uch.

I crawled out through the tunnel again and inhaled a deep breath when I began to smell the fresh ocean breeze…well, inhaled some air but more sand, because I breathed in at the wrong moment when the wind was passing by. As I was coughing my lungs out, I noticed the sun's position in the sky. I must've been in the cave for longer than I expected—the sky was showing signs of the fast-approaching sunset.

I may not have found my "dark door" or whatever, but I'd seen enough weirdness for one day; I decided to head off to the dock to wait for Carly and Freddie.

Once I was there, I took a seat at the edge, and let my feet dangle over the crystal clear water below. It was so beautiful that I wished I could just stay there forever. Then Nevel's words echoed in my head, but I tried to shove them out. I tried to concentrate only on the serenity of the moment. I let myself zone out as my legs swung back and forth over the ocean.

"What are you doing?" his perturbed voice broke the calm and took me out of my daydreaming.

A sigh came from next to me and I noticed at that moment that Carly was there. "Staring out at the ocean, not doing what she's supposed to. What else is new?"

My eyebrows lowered in annoyance but soon she shoved me playfully and sent me a smile.

"Ya know, we're looking for something for _you._"

"Yeah, I know," I shrug. "You don't seem to be doing a great job if you're back here already. I said we had to meet up at sunset, brain boy."

"And what exactly do you call this?" He thrust his arms out to the side, gesturing all around him.

I looked up. The sky was in fact orange. How the heck did I miss that? So, the dork was right, but I couldn't let him win the argument, could I? No, I couldn't. Absolutely not. I got in his face, seriously. "I call it 'the nerd better cut the attitude because Sam doesn't take jank from anyone.' That's what _I_ call it."

He huffed, and was about to say something back before Carly stepped in. "Well, I found nothing," she said in less of a sad-over-defeat and more of a happy-with-change-of-subject tone. "What about you guys?"

"Nothing," Freddie shook his head. "I searched the whole cove, and not a thing."

I was about to bring up the thing that happened with Nevel, but I decided against it. I just wanted to forget about it all together. "Nothin' for me, either." I put my hands behind my head and lay back on the wooden planks of the dock.

Freddie's face appeared in my line of sight. "I bet you didn't even look," he glared.

I stood up again. "I did so!"

Freddie nodded in sarcasm, sliding his hands into his pockets. "Ahuh," he rolled his eyes. "I bet you just stayed here this whole—" his eyes went wide. "Wait a minute!"

"What?" Carly jumped in alarm.

Freddie pulled something shiny out of his pocket. "My pear phone!" he shouted in triumph, that same stupid half-smile on his face.

Not a good time to push my buttons, Fredward. "Gimme that!" I grabbed for it.

"Hey! Wait! No! Sam!" He tried to defend, but I had already snatched it from him. I tried holding it far away from him as he tried to reach for it. "We could call someone from back home! We can call Spencer and ask for help! Give it, Sam!"

He pawed at it, and I tried to slap his hand away, but when I did--…the sleek metal, it--… the phone _slipped _from my hand. And I hadn't noticed until that point that my hand had been held above the water.

Freddie's, Carly's, and my mouths hung agape as the phone seemed to fall in slow motion. It fell into the water, and quickly disappeared into the depths, leaving behind only a burst of electricity in its wake.

I turned slowly to look at Freddie. His face was frozen in an expression of horror. I laughed nervously, "Dude…" I had no idea of what to say.

But that one word was enough to bring Freddie out of his stupor. His face slowly rose till he was no longer looking down at the water, but at me. He glared, angrier than I'd seen him be in a long time. "Look what you _did, Sam_," he practically shouted, and shoved me.

I stumbled, almost falling into the water. "Hey!" No one pushes Sam Puckett. I glared right back at him, in that way that always kind of made me feel like I was taller than him. Only this time—and a lot of times, recently—it wasn't working. "I thought that thing was indestructible!" I shouted out in defense. You _know _it's an odd day when I'm shouting _de_fensive things at the dweeb, rather than _of_fensive.

He spun around, bending slightly, as if unconsciously to show just how much effort it took to reach my eyelevel when you're that much taller than me. That didn't sit well for me. "Water is the _only_ thing that can destroy it!"

I shoved him back hard in the chest. "If it can be _destroyed_, then it's not _indestructible_!" I yelled. After taking a breath, I ended my glare and pointed in his direction. "That's false advertising, buddy. Blame the Pear Company, not me."

"You're the one who dropped it in the water!" he shot back.

"I didn't know that it would short out!" I yelled.

"Why did you even take it from me?!"

Because it ticks me off when you smile. I wanted to say that, but it would've sounded stupid. I never really cared about sounding stupid while arguing with the dork before, but suddenly, for some seriously unknown reason, it mattered. "Because I felt it should be in more capable hands!"

"Someone who drops a phone into the ocean is not a capable person!" he yelled back.

"Yeah?" I questioned, still in a shout. "Well we wouldn't even _be _stuck here if it weren't for _you_, so I don't think you should be talking about 'capable'!"

"That is the last straw, _Puckett_!" he growled.

"Yeah?" I challenged. "And what are you gonna do about it?"

He stood silent for a second and then did that frustrated unintelligible string of sounds. "I don't know!" he yelled. I smiled. I won. "But you're—" he started again before Carly cut him off.

"Guys!" Carly shouted. "Chill out! Can't you stop fighting for like, a second?!"

"She started it!" the dork yells, gesturing to me.

I nod, a dull expression on my face, but I fire back anyway. "Oh, yeah, just because I—" Now Carly cut _me_ off.

"_Guys!!!_" she yelled in her strictest tone manageable. "You're going to stop fighting _right now_!"

She said it as if she was performing mind-control or something, and the nub and I just glared at each other.

"Now. Apologize. Both of you."

Well, if it _was _mind-control, it wasn't working. We just stared at each other silently.

Carly flicked us both in the ear.

"Ow!" we shouted in unison, rubbing the spot where she had thumped us.

"Apologize. _Now_," she commanded again, standing between us with her hands on her hips, looking back and forth from Freddie to me.

Neither of us budged to say a word. We just kept glaring.

"Okay," she threw her hands up. "You're both getting a time-out."

"What?" Freddie asked, his face and tone contorted in dumfounded disbelief.

"Are you serious?" I questioned, indulging in the same emotion.

"Yes!" Carly said, eyes wide for emphasis. "Until you can start acting like the civilized teenagers I know deep down you are, you're being treated like children. Now, you're going to split up."

I glared. "Fine by me. I'm going to the tree house, where the _thing_ can't bother me," I said, beginning to walk off.

"How do you know I won't just follow you?" Freddie asked in annoyance.

I turned around, a mock smile on my face. "Well, for one thing, why would you want to?" I asked, rolling my eyes. "And second, dorks can't climb trees." I beamed and then continued walking away.

"I know about the stairs, Sam," he called after me.

Again, I turned around. "Your level of dorkage is so extreme that you can't climb stairs either."

Did he say anything after that? I don't know. He might've just stormed off. All I knew was that I had to keep walking towards the tree house so I could collect my thoughts, and not turn back at all costs.

Why not turn back, you ask? Well, because—and you're not going to believe this, but—for one of the first times ever, I just wanted the fighting to stop. In that moment back there, we were just angry at each other. And the longer we stood, staring at each other, things just got worse—escalated. At that rate, we could've said some pretty mean things—things that we could never take back. I didn't want that. Ever.

I mean, of course I make fun of the dweeb—always have and always will—and he always gets annoyed and tries to come back at me with something (and fails), but at the end of the day, it all just boils down to the fact that we're friends—really good friends—and that's what we do. It's our thing.

But during that argument back there, there was no teasing. It was just anger—pure, hurtful anger. I'm sure we both had already said some things we didn't mean and, when looking at the whole thing with a level head, wished we could take back. At least, I know I did. Kind of.

When I got inside the tree house, I took the blanket that was hanging on the wall and laid it down on the floor. I plopped down, seemingly too lazy to just lower myself to the ground. I wasn't lazy—it was just easier this way.

Sitting there, I tried to clear my head of everything and just concentrate on the sound of the rushing waterfall. Soon, I found myself unconsciously trying to match my breathing up to the ocean breeze, so that when my hair flew back, I was inhaling every time.

It was calming, I'll tell you that. I even closed my eyes and got into a comfortable slouch. But as I let my mind wander free, it seemed to find itself back to the original source of my frustration. I felt my face tense in a glare, and I let out a breath, out of sync with the wind.

He's so stupid. I was going to apologize for the stupid phone. I'm not really sure what I was planning on doing after that, but, well…he's the one who said everything happens for a reason!

Why was I trying to make excuses for myself? I didn't need to excuse myself from anything! So, I broke his phone. It probably wouldn't have worked here, anyway.

…Chiz, that was another one, wasn't it?

I opened my eyes at this point. This whole trying-to-relax thing obviously wasn't working.

I blinked. The sky was pretty dark—almost pitch black. I know sunsets pass fast, but they don't pass _that_ fast.

Cautiously, I stood, with a curious eyebrow raised. When I got to my feet and approached the opening of the tree house, I felt the wind crash into me. It wasn't the calming breeze it had been just a second ago, but an angry one. It pushed me back with about as much force as Freddie had earlier.

When I stepped outside, I was instantly drenched. It was raining. Hard.

I looked into the distance. Lightning crashed right down on one of the palm trees of the island, setting it ablaze. And thunder boomed so loudly that it shook the ground beneath me. Holy smoked ham, what a storm. It wasn't safe here for me.

As I was on my way down the stairs, I remembered I wasn't the only one in danger. Carly and Freddie were still on the island. And I had no idea where they were. I had to find them, and save them!

Suddenly, as I had just started taking off in a run, something rose out of the ground in front of me—a small shadow, almost impossible to see in the surrounding darkness and downpour.

I had literally no idea what to do about it, so I just stared. It obviously didn't like that. It flew at me, scratching and clawing. And suddenly, it wasn't the only one. I was overtaken by three, maybe four of them. I couldn't take it anymore. I screamed—I couldn't stop myself—and ran on as fast as my legs would take me. I had tried hitting them, and kicking them, but all my attempts failed—the attacks just passed through them. All I could do was run.

As I got to the bottom of the tree, I took notice of the tunnel from before. The cave was probably the safest place on the island right now, and I decided that that would be the place I would bring Carly and Freddie when I found them. But maybe they had beat me to it?

I decided to check it out. I crawled as fast as I possibly could through the tunnel and when I had reached the cave, I saw Carly, with her back to me standing in between my walls of memory.

I stood and called to her, speaking in a rushed tone of urgency. "Carly! I'm so glad your safe, have you seen--?" I cut myself off. She wasn't turning around. There was something wrong. I took a slow step forward, cautiously. "Carls?"

She turned to me, her eyes looked dead and her face was full of pain. "Sam…" she said, her voice emotionless and weak. "Help me…" Carly said, outstretching her arms.

And then she flew at me. Yeah, that's right, flew, as in she didn't use her legs. As I was about to catch her, she just disappeared.

I looked around helplessly for my best friend who had just disappeared before my eyes, her last expression and voice haunting every shallow and shaky breath I took. A lump rose in my throat and my voice called throughout the cave. "Carly?!?!?"

But the voice that echoed back to me was not my own. It was Nevel's and his words from before.

"No," I said, silently, not even meaning to speak as I shook my head and took a slow step back. I suddenly felt something wet trickle down my cheek—a tear. "No!" I yelled again and crawled back out of the tunnel.

I whimpered and sobbed as I ran through the shadows, pushing each and every one of them aside, yet not really touching a single one. I had no idea where I was going. The whole island suddenly seemed foreign to me. But I had to find Freddie, I had to know he was—

Suddenly, I spotted a person on the platform of land over the bridge. I had to keep running but tried to focus my sight to see who it was. The tree that had been struck by lightning from before burned brightly, and illuminated the occupant's face with an eerie glow. It was Freddie.

I raced to him as fast as I could. I stumbled to a stop, panting out of breath, and soaked from the rain and my tears. "Freddie!" I called to him with as much strength as I could muster.

He didn't turn around. My face fell even more in that second of silence that I gave to hope for him to possibly answer me. I felt my mouth pull down and my chest literally hurt. My tears fell faster, and though I knew it was probably a wasted effort, I tried to speak to him anyway. "Freddie, she disappeared!"

No response.

I almost fell forward as I yelled out, "Carly's gone and I don't know what happened to her!" For once, I _wanted _the old Freddie back—the one that pined over her endlessly and would do whatever it to save her. Where was he now? Where was Freddie?

Finally, he spoke. "The door has opened, Sam," he began in a calm and collected voice.

I froze. It was just like Nevel said. No! No, it couldn't be! What the idiot said couldn't _really_ be happening.

Freddie turned to me, then, as if not sure I was still actually there. "The door is open," he called again, now with more enthusiasm. "And now we can finally do what we were sent here for!"

"What are you talking about?! You're insane!" I shouted, never really meaning my words as much as I did in that second. "We have to get to safety! Snap _out_ of it, Freddie!"

"I am safe," he says sounding very sure of himself as he looks me in the eyes. "I'm not afraid of the darkness!"

"Yes you are!" I shout back. I try to convince myself this isn't real. This _can't_ be happening. The guy that's standing in front of me _can't_ be Freddie. "Dude, you sleep with a nightlight!" I call out in desperation.

"Not anymore," he says quietly, but not embarrassedly. "Darkness is the only answer, Sam," he calls out to me. "It is the only solution. We have to give in!" Freddie looks to the sky.

I feel my legs shaking beneath me—I'm close to collapsing—and I can't even tell how much I've cried as my tears blend with the rain. I'm--...

I'm genuinely scared.

"I'm not giving in to anything!" I shout.

He looks back to me, now, and reaches out a hand. "Sam. Come with me. Please."

I can't control myself anymore. I feel my legs walking towards him, my hand reaching for his. I don't even fear Nevel's warning anymore. I just want to help him. I just want to help my friend. "What about Carly…?" the part of me that's still logical asks.

His words are rushed as if he feels he's running out of time. "Carly's coming with us, too." Suddenly, his face changes from empty and blank to a rainbow-splattered canvas of emotion. What emotion, though? Desperation? Pleading? "Sam…please…I need you."

It seems like there's some deeper desperation to his words—some deeper meaning behind them. At that moment, I hear Freddie's voice echo in my head. _Be my light in the darkness,_ the voice begs in a whispered tone. I felt my face harden into a look of determination. Freddie needed me. And I was going to sick by him no matter what. I firmly gripped his hand.

Suddenly, black thorns jutted out of the group and pried us apart. Freddie was covered in darkness.

I yelled his name and lunged at the spot where he stood. I didn't care that I might be hurt. I needed to save him. I needed him.

But I fell flat on my face. Freddie was gone.

I was about to sob when I realized I was being surrounded again. I had no time to feel right now. I jumped to my feet and then there was this blinding light that covered the whole area. In my hand, I held the handle of a giant key.

The voice from my mind from when I had awoken on the island returned at that moment. It whispered, "Keyblade. Keyblade."

And before I could truly take in all of the details of the stuff happening around me, my mouth was hanging agape. From the ground, my shadow stretched and began to rise. It grew. And grew. And grew. And as it tried to crush me, and I just barely made it out of the way, my eyes widened in realization that I would have to fight this thing.

Little shadows were left in the wake of the attack, and as they came at me, I tried to visualize them as nerds from school. I have to say, it made it much easier to fight them. I swung my keyblade and soon eliminated all the tiny creatures of darkness. Now it was time for the big dude. I looked up at him. All I had to think was that this was the thing that had just taken my friends from me—that had just taken Freddie, personally, from me.

I gritted my teeth. I was going to beat this thing. With a battle cry, I ran towards the giant shadow and swung my keyblade relentlessly.

Eventually, it fell to its knees, and I grinned slightly in triumph.

But then, the wind started going in reverse. It began to pull me towards the sky—the sky which was now inhabited by a giant black hole. As I ran for a tree branch to hold onto, I saw the big dude reach for me out of the corner of my eye just before he was sucked up into the swirling vortex. I tried to hold on, but obviously this wasn't going to work for too long. As I thought those exact thoughts, the tree was uprooted and I was swallowed up into the black hole in the sky.

I screamed as I was dropped out of the sky and into a dark city alley on some fortunately soft crates (Well, softer than concrete.) My head hit the wall behind me and I groaned as I looked off into the brightly lit streets that resembled a more modernized medieval town.

Toto, I don't think we're in Kansas anymore.

--

**AN: Goodness that was long! I sure hope it was good, too. Sorry if it seemed a bit rushed. Near the storm scene, I wanted to make things sort of fast-paced, because in a situation like that, you don't really have the time to look at every little detail. In other news, I hope all of you had a wonderful Christmas, to those who celebrate it! Also, I want to thank all of my readers and reviewers again! (Especially Tenudra, who's reviewed every chapter thus far!) Keep doing what you're doing, guys, cause remember, you're what makes writing this truly worthwhile for me =) So, yeah, that's pretty much it. Thank you all again! Squee! I love reviews!**

**-Fictions**


	5. Chapter 5

Summary: When Carly, Sam, and Freddie buy a new video game from a shady shop, just how crazy will things get when they try to play it?

Disclaimer: I tried asking Dan Schneider and Tetsuya Nomaru if I could have their respective works, but they said "no" D= So I don't own iCarly or Kingdom Hearts.

iFight For the Light: Chapter 5

I slowly hopped off of the high crate I had landed on. Still groaning, I rubbed my head as I walked out of the alley. The place was brighter than Vegas, but still looked pretty…town-ish.

"Hey!" a familiar voice shouted, and soon I came face-to-face with one of my old friends—Rip-off Rodney. "Are you the one who's breakin' crates in my store's alley?"

I was too shocked to answer. My mouth opened around three times to say something but closed shortly after. For one of the first times in my life, I was speechless. But I had to say _something_. "Rodney?" was all I managed out.

Rodney raised an eyebrow. "No. The name's Cid. Cid Highwind." He tilted his head. Suddenly, his hands were in my face, gripping my eyelids open as he leaned in to take a closer look. "Your eyes are dilated. Poor kid, ya probably have a concussion."

I blinked, furrowing my eyebrows in confusion as Rodney took a few steps away before he turned around again.

"Come to my shop, kiddo. I'll fix you up."

I shrugged and followed him. Hey, this was probably one of the most normal requests I'd heard all day.

Rodney stepped behind the counter of his shop and took out a bottle. He opened it and handed it to me. "Here, drink."

I cocked a brow. This place didn't _look_ like a bar, but--…

Rodney shot me a sad smile. "It's just a potion, kid, to heal your head." He scoffed. "You kidding? I wouldn't have given you something like _that_."

I unconsciously pursed my lips. Had I become that easy to read? Still warily, I took the bottle and quickly drank a sip.

"There ya go," he encouraged. "Now, girly, what were ya doin' out in my alley, huh?"

I shrugged. "I just landed there."

"Landed there?" he repeated, tilting his head. "What, did you jump off the ledge or something?"

I tried to think back to the alley. He must've thought I jumped off of the back wall. I raised an eyebrow in annoyance. Rodney knew me. Why would I have jumped off some stupid ledge? "Uh, no?" I tilted my head so now only half of my face was visible to him. "Why would I do that?"

Rodney had had his arms crossed on the counter. He shrugged—his arms now out to the side to emphasize his confusion further. "Dunno," he admitted. "That was gonna be my next question to you, actually. So, where did ya fall from, then?"

"The sky," I answered before realizing just how stupid that response sounded. Yep, I fell right from the sky and right on my head and here I am now. Funny how that's really pretty much what happened.

Rodney just nodded, like he understood and like what I said was the most normal thing in the universe. "Your world was attacked." He didn't ask that, he stated it—he knew.

I shot up enthusiastically, my hands flying to the counter. "Yeah! By these shadows! And then Carly--…" I cut myself off and tried to jump ahead. "And then, Freddie--…" but again, I found myself at a loss of words.

"And then you landed here," he nodded, his gaze on an item in the display case in front of him. "It's what happens to everyone whose world is destroyed by the heartless," Rodney answered as he moved the oddly shaped item gently with his fingertips. He smiled when he felt it was perfectly placed and closed the case, locking it with a key.

I glared. "My world—" I stopped realizing that the island _wasn't_ my world. I had just wished it were. "The island—" I corrected, "—wasn't destroyed. It was attacked, yeah, but—"

"Look, kid," Rodney cut me off. "The heartless attacked your world. If it wasn't destroyed, you wouldn't have ended up here."

I looked down, my face suddenly blank. Everything familiar to me was just disappearing. The real world, Carly, Freddie…and now the island that I kind of loved.

I heard Rodney sigh. "I'm sorry, girly. But it's the truth." His hand rested firmly on the counter. "I'm afraid to tell ya that you're stuck here."

My face tightened—not in anger, but in some other emotion I couldn't really place.

"But, if Cid—" I looked up and tried to glare when he mentioned "his name" but I'm not sure if I could change my expression at that moment. Whatever I did, it made him take back his words. "Rodney—" he amended "—can make your stay in Traverse Town any easier, just let me know. Okay, kiddo?"

I nodded and looked off to the side.

"Hey," he called for my attention again. I looked at him and he smiled, tossing me a few items. One was a tiny square, about the size of my hand, and the other was a small bottle. "That one's a tent, and that one's a travel-sized potion. They're on the house."

A small smile appeared on my face as I put the gifts in my pockets. "Thanks," I said, back to my normal tone. When I looked back to Rodney's face, he was smiling even brighter.

"Don't mention it," he said, waving a hand. "Don't worry, Sam. I'm sure everything will work out."

My expression went confused and I blinked. "How do you know my name?" I asked.

"You told me it," he nodded. "Earlier," Rodney tacked on.

"No, I didn't." I slowly shook my head.

"Sure ya did." He slid his hands in his pockets. "Now I'm sorry to make you leave, but I'm expecting a new shipment any second and I've gotta close the shop for that."

I was pretty sure I hadn't told him my name, but then again I _had _hit my head, so maybe I just didn't remember it. I nodded in understanding. "Oh, okay."

Rodney nodded once to me and waved. "See ya around, kiddo."

"See ya, Rodney," I called back as I closed the door.

As interesting as this all may seem to be, if I had the chance to do it all again, I wouldn't. Sighing, I walked aimlessly around the area of the shop.

After what I thought was about fifteen minutes, but what was probably actually five, I realized waiting for the shop to be open again was a pretty stupid idea. It reminded me of some saying I had heard, about some pot boiling or whatever. The thought of pots boiling led me to think about the food possibly in those pots. Oh man, what I'd do for some boiled ham right now. My stomach echoed my thoughts as it growled with ferocity.

"Easy, Chewbacca," I said to it. Yeah, yeah, I talk to my stomach, so? And yes, I nicknamed it, too. Now, shut up. I rubbed my tummy.

It seemed like the perfect time to go scout for food. I mean, I had no idea where I was and the only place that seemed to welcome me so far was currently out of commission so, why not explore for a bit, right?

I walked to the right of the shop and found these really random stairs on the back. They must lead to that ledge Rodney had mentioned earlier. I figured I would climb them. There had to be something the platform led to. People didn't build stairs that led to nowhere. Well, I would. But normal people don't usually build stairs that lead to nowhere.

When I made it to the top of the staircase, I was about to head through a door on the right of me, but a voice called from the left of me and made me freeze in place. "Well it's about time the keyblade wielder arrived."

I gasped and turned around. The guy talking had his back facing me, so I couldn't see his face. I could make out what he was wearing, though. He was in all black leather—a red emblem on the back of his short-sleeved jacket.

"But you don't look capable enough to use it." He turned to me slightly, but I still couldn't make out his face from the shadows where he stood. "So it must not have really chosen you."

His words reminded me of the fight Freddie and I had before and I glared. I was sick of people calling me incapable. "You kidding me?" I shouted back. "I ooze capable!"

"So, what did you do?" he asked, ignoring my words. "Did you steal it?" The owner of the voice smiled in his tone.

I got angrier. He was making jokes about me being incapable! He thought I stole the keyblade. I don't know if he thought he was funny or not, but I sure didn't. "The thing appeared in _my hands_!" I yelled.

The guy-hiding-in-the-shadow's voice went serious again. "I don't like liars."

I glared and walked closer slowly. I wasn't lying—I _never_ lie—and in a second, this guy was going to get a piece of my mind. No one calls Sam Puckett a liar.

As I was only a couple of steps away from seeing his face, the dude put out a hand. "Give me the keyblade," he commanded.

I stopped. "What?!" I called in disbelief. "No way am I giving this thing to you!" From the insistence in his voice, I could tell the weapon was important. And I wasn't just going to hand it over to anyone. Especially not someone who had just been insulting me and calling me a liar. No way.

He sighed and turned fully to me. His face was still hidden but the huge sword in his hand wasn't. "I guess I'll have to take it by force, then."

I clenched my teeth and got into a crouch, bracing myself. "I guess you're gonna have to try!" I challenged.

The guy shrugged and then jumped at me. He instantly sent slash after slash at me, and I blocked him, but it wasn't easy. My defense was falling fast. This dude was insanely strong! Note to self: Don't randomly challenge shady guys you don't know in this place ever again.

I rolled out of the way just before his sword came crashing to the ground, leaving an indent in the stone floor.

He jumped at me again, and I only got in one swing—which he blocked—before he began his barrage of slashes again.

Through the entire fight, I tried to catch a glimpse of the guy's face, but he was either too far away or attacking too fast for me to see.

He kept attacking, and I kept blocking the best I could. Again, my defense was quickly failing, so you can imagine how thankful I was when the, up until this point, flawless fighter stumbled forward.

As he righted himself, I finally got the chance to dish out an attack of my own. I whacked him hard with my keyblade. And when I say hard, I mean way harder than I expected. The guy went flying yards away from me. At any other time, I would've grinned and laughed in triumph, but right now, I just braced myself again as the dude with the sword stopped himself just before he hit the wall and landed on his feet.

He held his sword up and just stood there. Now, before you ask why I didn't try to catch a look at his face at this point, I'll tell you it was because I was busy staring at his sword—the point of which was now glowing. .

Before I realized it, a blast shot from the blade and I was sent flying back and into the air. When I crashed onto the ground, I was facing the dark sky. I had had the wind knocked out of me, and I quickly tried to inhale as I felt my other senses failing. My vision was blurred, and my hearing was echoed—as if I were underwater. I had no strength to move when I heard the sound of echoed footsteps coming closer to me—the echoed footsteps of the swordsman.

A sigh. "The worlds really are in trouble, aren't they?" his voice said as his footsteps halted and he stood over me.

The last thing I saw before heading into what I hoped was just unconsciousness was the swordsman's face—the face of Spencer Shay.

--

**AN: Hope that was all right, you guys, and I really hoped I stayed in-character. Well, I know Spencer was OOC, but he was supposed to be. It'll all be explained later, trust me XD Uch, I suck at writing action. I really hope the fight scene came out okay and you all like it. Thank you all so much for your kind reviews! Really, they're about the nicest things I've ever heard anyone say about my writing. I greatly appreciate each and every one of them! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and if I don't get to write more before then, have a happy New Year! And if anyone has any questions, feel free to message me ^^ That's all for now!**

**-Fictions**


	6. Chapter 6

Summary: When Carly, Sam, and Freddie buy a new video game from a shady shop, just how crazy will things get when they try to play it?

Disclaimer: I have a bunch of voices in my head, but none of them are Dan Schneider or Tetsuya Nomaru =( I don't own iCarly or Kingdom Hearts

iFight For the Light: Chapter 6

"Hey…Hey, wake up." The speech comes in echoed and fuzzy. "Come on, open your eyes," the voice coaxes, gently shaking me. Normally, I'd start swinging from such a wake-up, but right now I feel like I _have _to open my eyes, because so far, the voice sounds like—

"Freddie!" I say when my eyes snap open. And it's true. The dork is staring me right in the face. I didn't mean to sound so excited about it, though. I _wasn't_ that excited about it. I was just surprised is all. "Hey," I begin slowly, biting my lip. "I'm…glad you're okay. You scared me," I nod.

Freddie gives me a weird look, but I disregard it, because it's now that I realize Carly's standing right behind him…giving me the same look, but whatever.

"Carly! You're okay, too!"

"Ohhh, Leon, I think you hit her a bit too hard." Alright, now it's my turn to look confused. The words are coming out of Carly's mouth, but…it's all in Mrs. Benson's voice.

Suddenly, my vision blurs and I blink. I see things for how they really are now. It wasn't Freddie sitting in front of me, but Spencer. And that girl behind him wasn't Carly—it was Mrs. Benson…in this really nice I'm-having-a-mid-life-crisis outfit.

Wait a minute. Spencer had just knocked me _unconscious_. I jump and grip my keyblade, which was apparently lying right next to me. I notice that I'm really weak, though, and I fall back onto the bed. My eyes dart around nervously but I keep my keyblade in front of me in case there's the need to strike.

Spencer puts his hands out. "Easy there," he says in a calming quiet tone. "I'm not gonna hurt you."

"But, before—" I begin, but he cuts me off.

"I was only testing your strength. I don't really want to fight with you."

"But you said—"

He shakes his head and cuts me off again. "I was _just_ trying to egg you on. I know the keyblade belongs to you. I couldn't take it if I wanted to."

I clench my jaw. I hate when people cut me off. That had been the cause of many a fight back at school for me. Annoyed me so much I would jump the poor kid (whoever said poor kid could be) and beat the snot out of them. Then there'd be Briggs, and detention, and yatta, yatta, yatta…

"Leon, I really don't think she likes it when you cut her off." Of course, Mrs. Benson perceptive as always catches onto my annoyance. And why did she keep calling him _Leon_? He was _Spencer_. Spencer the fencer—and in this case? Boy did it show.

Spencer nodded slowly. "I apologize." What was wrong with him? He wasn't acting like Spencer. In fact he was acting so unlike Spencer that it was making me sick. I really couldn't take all of this change at once. But I just shook my head and tried to change the subject.

"You said you couldn't take my keyblade from me if you wanted to. What did you mean?" I asked.

"Well, look what happens." He grabbed my keyblade and held it out in front of him. In that very instance, it faded from him, shimmering gold ash left in its wake.

My eyes widened as my right hand suddenly felt heavier. Lifting it, I realized that the keyblade had returned to me. "_Whoa_," I exclaimed in amazement. And then I turned back to Mrs. Benson and Spencer and pointed at my weapon. "Now, _that_ was awesome pawsome."

There was a _very _awkward silence that passed through the room. Spencer looked at Mrs. Benson and she just shrugged. And I just sat there, apparently having embarrassed myself. This world was strange. So telling someone you just fell out of the sky was completely normal, but being amazed by something and calling it "awesome pawsome" was weird? Maybe I really _did_ land in Oz or something.

"So," Spencer broke the silence. "Cid told me that he—"

"Rodney," I interjected.

Spencer furrowed his brows. "What?"

"His name's Rodney," I nodded.

Carly's brother blinked. "Yeah…" he said in his this-is-awkward tone. "His name's Cid…"

I raised an eyebrow and shot him one of my famous obnoxious looks. "Uh, no it isn't."

He took a deep breath and looked down. "Okay…" After pausing a moment, he tried again. "Anyway, he told me that he mentioned the heartless to you, but I bet you don't actually know what they are."

"They were the shadows that attacked the island I was on," I nodded as if it were obvious. And it was.

"Right, they're these creatures of darkness. They search from world-to-world collecting hearts."

I blinked and tilted my head. "Why?"

"Well, because they're heart_less_." He emphasized the suffix of the word. Suffix…that word always sounded like some ancient Egyptian bug to me. "They're cold and empty, always searching for the warmth and fullness that hearts hold," he continues. "But their bodies can't contain that energy. So it's just absorbed and turned into more dark emptiness."

Dark, empty, cold—it was just like I felt when I'd woken up on the island before.

"And they just gather up heart after heart until the world is completely destroyed," concluded Mrs. Benson.

"But how would gathering hearts destroy a world?" I asked. "I mean, it's horrible, but wouldn't it just leave the whole place empty—like, unpopulated or something?"

Spencer laughs. "You think people and animals are the only beings with hearts, Sam?"

"Okay, now I'm _sure_ I didn't tell _you guys_ my name."

"Cid—"

"Rodney," I corrected.

"—told us," concluded Spencer.

"Everything has a heart," Mrs. Benson continued back on subject with a shake of her head. "Even the worlds themselves."

"So," I had looked down in trying to understand, but then picked my head back up, staring from Spencer to Mrs. Benson. "The heartless stole the island's heart?"

"And the hearts of many other worlds, yes," Mrs. Benson nodded once, calmly.

"Well," I bit my lip and felt my eyebrows furrow with concern, though I really didn't know why I felt that way. "Is there any way to bring the worlds back?"

"There is," Spencer smiled at this. "That's why you're here."

My eyebrows furrowed more, with confusion this time and I shook my head. "I don't understand."

"You will," he nodded, as his smile grew wider.

At that moment, Shannon—yes, _Shannon_, the girl from school who stalks Freddie—burst into the room. She was dressed in this odd pink dress that had buttons going all the way up the front. Still lacking in style, I see. "Yuffie," –she nodded to Mrs. Benson—"Leon," –and then to Spencer. When she looked between the two, at me, her face lit up with a slow, warm smile. "Sam!" she said with excitement. "Good to see you're awake!"

"What's going on, Aerith?" Spencer asked.

Okay, I had had it. I stood up, stomping my feet hard on the floor as I did. "_Why_ do you people keep calling each other those weird names?!" I shouted. "You're Spencer!" I yelled as I pointed a finger at him. Then my finger slid to Shannon. "You're Shannon!" And then I brought my pointed finger to Mrs. Benson. "And you're a lonely and crazy old lady!"

Mrs. Benson's face contorted as if I had insulted her. Which I did, but that was nothing new. My insults to her had become so frequent that they didn't even upset her anymore…except for this time, apparently. "_Old lady_?" she yelled back, obviously offended. "I'll have you know that I'm a ninja at the top of my game!"

"A lonely, crazy, and_ delusional_ old lady!" I shouted in return. Ah, fighting with a Benson. It felt good to have some normalcy back in my life.

I saw Spencer look to Shannon out of the corner of my eye as Mrs. Benson and I stared-off. "What's she talking about?" he asked her.

I listened closely to hear Shannon's answer to see if she actually knew what she was talking about. "She probably sees us as those people from her memories. We should just humor her," she smiled.

Great, now I was being patronized. My glare intensified.

Mrs. Benson's face relaxed. "Oh, that's right," she commented, looking to Shannon and raising a finger. "Cid did say—"

"_Rodney_!" I corrected _yet again_.

She sucked in a deep breath and turned again to glare at me. I just smirked in return. Like mother like son, huh?

"Yes," Shannon nodded, hands behind her back. Her warm smile was still in place. "I am aware that _Rodney_ told you about that." She turned her smiling gaze to me.

I just shot her a fake grin and a thumbs-up. Yeah, way to go, moron.

"So, what did you need to tell us, Aer—" Spencer stopped himself. "Sharon."

Shannon giggled. "It's _Shannon_, Spencer."

"Right, Shannon Spencer," he nodded.

I rolled my eyes but couldn't help but smile a little. It was good enough. At least he was sort of acting like Spencer right now.

Shannon giggled again, putting her hand to her mouth to stifle her laughter. "I came to tell you that the others have been briefed and are ready to go."

I blinked and raised an eyebrow. "Others? Briefed and ready to go? What?"

"You'll see," Spencer said. Suddenly, a scream came from outside the room we were in. "Probably right now, actually." He grabbed his sword and opened a pair of double doors, heading on the balcony.

"Wait, _what_?" I shouted. This was all happening too fast!

"Come on, Sam," he yelled excitedly, a grin on his face. "You're about to learn how to fight." And without warning, he jumped from the ledge.

I ran to the ledge. "Has everyone just jumped on the crazy train today?!"

Spencer was fighting a heartless in armor off with his sword. "Sam! Come down!" he called.

"You're insane!" I yelled. "I'm not jumping down there!"

I heard a bubbling noise and turned around. My eyes widened in shock as I saw the heartless standing right behind me.

"Okay! Okay, I'm coming!" I shouted and leaped.

As I landed on my feet, stumbling minimally, Spencer sliced through a heartless, and a heart was the only thing left behind. It glowed and flew up to the sky. "I see you decided to come down after all!" he yelled over the clanging metal as another heartless jumped at him and he slashed.

"I kinda didn't have much of a choice!" I yelled as I blocked against the heartless that had followed me from the balcony. I was slowly being backed up to Spencer.

"Well, we know you have blocking down," he stabbed at the heartless he was fighting, but it just blocked itself. The recoil pushed him back, and in-turn pushed me into my own heartless. "Now try attacking!"

"I don't think I can!" My heartless jumped at me again and I moved to block once more. The thing seemed to be getting annoyed with my constant blocking. I could only see its eyes but I could tell it was glaring at me. "These are much bigger than the ones I faced on the island!"

Spencer jumped in the air to avoid the heartless' claw that tried to slash him. "Yeah, but you hit me and I'm taller than _they _are." He ducked to dodge another swipe. He raised his sword and let it charge. "Just swing!" A blast shot from the sword at the creature and it did the whole disappearing process again.

Well, here goes nothing. I ducked and swung for the heartless' legs. Its eyes seemed to widen and it jumped in the air. I stuck out my tongue in determination and leaped upward. I used my keyblade to smack it back to the ground.

It landed on its feet, but once I got back down, I grinned because so did I.

Spencer chuckled from behind me, fighting off some more soldiers of his own. "Good, good! You should probably try to practice fighting with one hand, in case you ever have to hold something while you battle!"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm going." I slashed with both hands from the right, then from the left. I decided to finish off with something fancy. I moved my feet so my back was facing the heartless, and slid the handle of my keyblade into my left hand—even though I'm _right_-handed. I always hit harder with my left—I reached back, and as the heartless was about to jump at me, I slashed out with the keyblade and watched as the heartless dissolved. I smiled widely because—let's face it—_man _that was cool.

"Now you're getting it!" Spencer called, still not himself enough to omit the 'g' from 'getting.'

I was turning around to thank him when a claw flew right past my face; Apparently, I'd just fortunately moved out of the way and dodged a heartless that planned to swipe my face off. I ducked into a roll and threw my keyblade into the air when I stood again to block another attack.

Spencer turned around for a second, still slashing at a soldier in front of him. "You might be a little nervous about practicing in a place where real danger is involed!"

"Hah, you kidding?" I asked, looking back after sending a heartless flying into the wall of the building we had been in. I wore my trademark grin on my face. "I'm _Sam Puckett_. I _live_ for danger!"

As the heartless ran back towards me, my grin grew wider.

"Oh, what? You want some more?" I held my keyblade in my right hand and gave the thing a four-finger taunt. "Then bring it!"

Its claw headed for my face, but as that happened, I ducked, and slashed into its chest with my right hand. It disappeared.

I spun around, exhilarated, and ready to fight off any heartless that might be coming at us from the other side. When I saw that they were all gone, I jumped up, my arms in the air. "Woohoo!" I cheered and jumped. After pointing dramatically, I smirked and said, "And _that's _why I'm the toughest kid back at school!"

Spencer smiled and pat me on the shoulder. "Good job, Sam." He passed me and began to head for a door back into the building.

I stayed, of course, to boast. "I know!" I beamed. "I mean, did you _see_ those hits? It's like I'm a keyblade _master_!"

Suddenly, I heard what sounded like three sets of rushed footsteps coming from above. "What do you mean 'right now'?" a deep, worried voice asked.

"I mean you have to go _right now_!" shouted a rushed Mrs. Benson.

"But Mrs. Benson," argued another higher nervous voice. "That's a ledge! Mrs. Benson!" The footsteps didn't stop. "Mrs. Bens-AHH!!!"

Apparently, I had picked the wrong spot to stand in because the next thing I saw were two guys falling from the balcony _right above me_.

…

And then they landed right _on top_ of me. I growled like a car idling as the idiots just _sat _there.

"Whoa, that was…a little racy," one voice said, trying to catch his breath.

"Yeah," the higher-pitched voice said. "Good thing Sam broke our fall." Then they both seemed to realize what he'd said. "Sam?!" they exclaimed together and jumped off of me.

I stood still growling. "Who _are_ you--?!" I was about to shout when my eyes widened in realization. "Gibby?!" I looked to the other one, my expression of shock still frozen onto my face. "Shane?!"

"Ah!" Shane yelled. "It's that girl!" He seemingly tried to back up _through_ the wall that was behind him.

"Sam!" Gibby called. "What are you doing here?!"

"Me?!" I shouted back. "What are _you guys_ doing here?!"

"Uh, guys," Shane interrupted, looking even more frightened than before. "I don't think now's the time to try to reconnect with each other." He was pointing and as I watched Gibby look to see whatever it was Shane was trying to show us, his eyes widened in fear.

I turned around and soon shared their expressions. In front of us stood a giant heartless suit of armor. It twitched as its limbs spun around, detached from the rest of its body.

"Well, keyblade master," Spencer called from where he sat on the balcony, his legs hanging over the ledge as he grinned. "Looks like it's time to prove yourself."

--

**AN: Woo! That one was actually **_**very**_** fun to write and I'm really proud of it. There's so much to say about this one but I just don't know how to put it into words XD I originally thought this chapter was gonna be much shorter than it turned out to be, but once I really got into writing out the chat between Sam, Spencer, Mrs. Benson and Shannon, it just kind of flowed. So anyway, I hope you all really enjoyed it and I hope you all have a happy and a healthy New Year! Once again, thank you for all the reviews and story and author adds! I really appreciate it, and it makes me feel really great about my writing! I'll be writing more soon! Until then, you guys!**

**-Fictions**


	7. Chapter 7

Summary: When Carly, Sam, and Freddie buy a new video game from a shady shop, just how crazy will things get when they try to play it?

Disclaimer: I had this awesome secret agent plan where I got Nathan Kress and Jennette McCurdy to get me ownership of iCarly! Too bad that plan didn't include Kingdom Hearts. And too bad that plan was just a dream…yeah. I don't own iCarly or Kingdom Hearts. Dan Schneider and Tetsuya Nomaru do.

iFight For the Light: Chapter 7

I gulped as I stared at the huge suit of armor in front of me. The giant armored heartless came towards us. Alright, maybe that doesn't sound too scary to you, but if you replace the word "heartless" with "tank" in that sentence, then that'd be enough to strike fear in almost anyone.

Gibby shouted to me. "Sam! We gotta move before this thing crushes us!"

I assumed the role I was meant to—of the fearless leader. I held my head high and glared at the creature. "Alright, let's go!" I yelled.

As I ran forward, I took out my keyblade and began slashing at the heartless' legs. I wasn't really paying attention, but I'm pretty sure Gibby took out a staff or something. Shane, on the other hand, had only a shield.

He stood there, confused. "How am I supposed to fight with a shield?!" he asked.

I concentrated on slashing and swinging but called back, "I dunno! Throw it or something!"

I glanced back to see him furrow his eyebrows. "That's not what you're supposed to do with a shield!"

"Well," I ducked and slashed. "Then _you_ figure out what to do with it!"

Minutes went by, and I have to say, the fight was going pretty well. All I had to do was dodge a couple of times so the thing wouldn't step on me, and then just keep swinging and slashing. Nothing too exciting.

Once the leg I had been "fighting" disappeared, I looked over to see how Gibby was doing with his leg. To my surprise, the little dweeb had already finished it off and was doing the same thing and checking up on _me_. Why don't you look at the _rest _of the thing that's attacking us, Gibby? I don't need you checking on _me_.

But I spoke too soon, and had taken too long to look. My little glance had turned into a stare and I didn't see—or hear—the body of the heartless spin around like a giant top after me. But I sure did feel it when it crashed into me. I was thrown into the air, and before I hit the ground, I was struck again. …And again. Oh, for ham's sake! Let me drop already!

When I had finally hit the ground, I was in immense pain. "Sam!" Gibby called out to me, and suddenly, I was surrounded in green light. And then, everything felt better. Gibby had healed me!

"Whoa, dweeb! Thanks!" I said as I stood, grinning and shaking out my arm. Alright, I'll admit it—that was cool. But I still think I could've taken this whole thing out by myse—

"Watch out, Sam!" Shane called as he ran to me. He quickly pushed me behind him and held out his shield, which reflected the heartless' attack. My eyes were wide with shock, but I quickly recovered so I could put on a little mock smile and give a thumbs up when Shane then shouted, "Check it out—found a use for the shield!" grinning. When he saw my reaction, he just gave this sad look and slinked back to the background.

What? So, he's cute. He's still an AV nerd. We'd established that a _long _time ago.

I returned to battle mode after that. I ran to the heartless and slashed with my keyblade.

Gibby was casting spell after spell and sending stuff like fire and lightning at the thing. Seriously, I had no idea that kid could be so hardcore! If it wouldn't ruin my image, I might even compliment him for it.

But, no matter how good we were, after awhile, we got tired. Panting, I tried to move forward for one more swing—the heartless was almost out, all it had was its torso and head left—but I couldn't do it. Suddenly, Gibby and I spun around as we heard a battle cry come from behind us.

Shane ran at the armor and leapt, putting his weight into his shield. When he came crashing down on the heartless, it disappeared with a great clanging sound.

I grinned. "Alright, guys! We did it!" We all gave each other high-fives, but then my face went all business. "Although it was totally all me."

Gibby glared and cleared his throat.

I turned to him, smiling falsely. "You choking on something, dork?" I asked. Then I faced heavenward. "Finally, my wish has come true!"

"No!" Gibby yelled, putting his hands on his hips. "You're kidding, right? It was all _me _in that fight."

"Ohhhhh, no, no, no, no, _no_, Gibster, I don't think—"

Shane cut in, both figuratively and literally. He stepped into the space that I was quickly closing between me and Gibby. "Uh, _hello_." He waved a hand. "I think we're all forgetting about who finished off the heartless with their amazingly useless shield powers."

Gibby and I both glared at Shane in silence. But after a second or two, we were all smiling and snickering with laughter. "So what are you guys doing here, anyway?" I asked.

It was Shane who spoke first. "Well, Gibby got this new video game from—"

"Let me guess," I interrupted. "A shady, creepy shop, right?"

Gibby looked at the floor, slightly embarrassed and spoke quietly. "Yes…" he answered.

"Figures," I sighed and rolled my eyes. "Same thing as our nerd."

"I'm not a nerd," Gibby called back annoyed. He was fine with looking—and glaring—at me now and was doing a good job of demonstrating that point.

"Hey, you know what they say," I replied, swiveling my head and biting my lip, as if speaking in pure honesty. "If the shirt fits." I shrugged, and then furrowed my eyebrows. "Speaking of which, I just noticed you're missing."

Yeah…the idiot was standing there in front of us in blue pants and no shirt. Nice. "The saying is 'if the _shoe_ fits.' And yeah, but I came in this way." He crossed his arms over his chest.

"Classy!" I replied sarcastically.

"What can I say?" Gibby asked rhetorically. "This game knows me."

"All too well," I nodded. "Too bad we don't want to know you as much as it does."

The shirtless wonder rolled his eyes.

"Anyway, back to why you're here?" I asked, moving my hand in a circular motion so as to gesture that Shane should continue from where he'd left off.

"Yeah," Shane said slowly, taking a page from Spencer and using his this-is-weird expression. "Well, so, Gibby bought the game and then…"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, you were sucked in. And _then_?" So I was impatient. I had already been through everything Shane was saying; it was _boring_. Sue me.

Shane looked to Gibby. For some reason, the dork was glaring at me. Then, he looked over at Shane and shrugged.

Gibby decided to continue instead. He looked to me and sighed. "And after we were sucked into the game, we ended up here. And then, Shannon picked us up."

"Yeah." Shane picked up after him, looking back and forth at him and then me and nodded. "She told us that we were here to help—" he did air quotes during this and altered his tone so that it sounded deeper, more authoritative. "—'the key barer along their journey.'"

"Right, and considering you're carrying around a giant key…" Gibby broke off.

"Hey, congratulations, Sherlock. You solved the mystery," I said, waving a finger in the air in mock celebration.

Neither of them said anything. Shane just kept looking back and forth between us and Gibby just glared at me.

"I'm _joking_," I said, giving him a shove. "Lighten up." Really, that's just how I play around. And I usually "play around" with ol' Fredward. But since he disappeared, I can't--…I just decided to continue. "Now, come on. I think we could all deserve a rest and I know a guy that'd be willing to take us in for the night."

"Nice," Gibby nodded.

"Who's the guy?" Shane questioned.

I had already started walking, and I didn't turn around to answer. "Oh…just…Rip-offRodney," I spoke the name quickly, hoping the two knuckleheads behind me didn't hear. And also hoping that I could run fast enough to use the excuse that I didn't hear them when they asked again.

"Rip-off _Rodney_?" Gibby called from behind me, sounding confused.

"Who's Rip-off Rodney?" Shane asked slowly.

"He's that guy that sells random junk at school," the shirtless kid informed him before I could turn around to do so. So, I just nodded in confirmation.

"Oh! Him!" he said in realization. "Wait, he's here, _too_?"

"Well, yeah," I shrugged. "Sorta. He calls himself Cid, but he's still Rodney."

"Well, do you _really _think he's gonna take us in?" Shane asks.

"Probably!" I throw up my arms. I'm walking backwards now, way ahead of them. I can't help if I'm faster than the dweebs. "He was really nice to me before, so worse comes to worst, I'll be able to get in while _you_ two spend some quality time outside, fighting off heartless for the rest of the night." I shrugged. "Works for me." I ran ahead.

"You're kidding, right?" I heard Gibby call. "She's kidding, right?!" he must've asked Shane, panicking.

"I dunno, man. Come on, let's go!" shouted Shane before I heard his rushed footsteps following me.

"Guys! Slow down!" Gibby yelled. "My legs aren't as long as yours! Sam!! Shane!"

He called out to no avail. Neither of us stopped running. Shane and Gibby were running to a warm bed. I didn't know what I was running to. What waited ahead of me? I wasn't sure. The only thing I did know was that there was this emptiness inside of me. It appeared when Carly vanished. And it only got ten times worse when Freddie did. _Why_, though? Why did it get so much worse when the dork disappeared? Was it because we didn't leave off on a good note from before? Or was it something else?

What did he even _mean_ anyway? Why had he looked at me like he did? Why had I heard him ask me to be his light in the darkness?

Why did he just _leave_ right after?

You know, Fredward, it's hard to help someone when they're not around to be helped. I swear, sometimes he—_erg! _I groaned inwardly. I couldn't take this. There were too many questions; too many questions about _him_. Why did I _care _so much? What was _wrong_ with me?

My thoughts were interrupted when we'd reached the door to Rodney's shop. Shane was about to knock when Gibby's footsteps slowed to a stop behind us. Rodney, however, opened the door before Shane could lay a hand on it. "Oh, good, you guys are right on time."

My head tilted so that only half of my face was visible. "Beh?" I murmured, because saying 'what?" took too much energy right now.

"I need you guys to deliver something for me." He handed me a small book. "Here. It needs to go to this place in the third district; the entrance has a picture of a flame on it. It's a bit tricky to find and even trickier to get inside but…well, I'm sure you guys'll figure it out. You're a smart bunch."

I scoffed. "Me? Yeah. But I'm not so sure about the other two stooges here."

"Hey, I'm in the AV club!" Shane called insulted.

"Well, at least one of them's got some brains. What about you, Gibby?"

"I'll have you know I'm in the math club," he said, and I felt his glare bore into my back.

"Alright," I said to Rodney smiling. "So we've got one cool genius and two nerds. All systems go on the smartness."

Shane and Gibby groaned from behind me and I had no doubt that they both rolled their eyes.

Rodney laughed. "Good kids. You guys get a move on, now."

"Wait," I said before he closed the door.

"Yeah?"

"We were wondering if we could rest here for awhile."

Rodney "tsk"ed. "No can do, kiddo. You guys really gotta deliver that thing first. I'm sure you can rest there."

"In the fire place?" Shane asked.

Gibby gulped. "That…doesn't really have a nice ring to it."

"Come on, Rodney," I pleaded sincerely. "Can't we rest here? Just for like, fifteen minutes?"

"Sorry, kids," he shrugged. "I got lots of things to attend to around here. Good luck on finding the place and getting in." He waved to us.

"Thanks…" we all grumbled disheartened.

I hated walking in this place. There were barely any people in the streets aside from us, and those that were, were too friendly.

They smiled at us and waved. Mainly at me. They said "hello," and I swore, I even heard a woman whisper, "thank heavens" under her breath as we passed. I know I'm supposed to be the one that's going to save all the other worlds and stuff, but I wasn't used to people acting like this around me. And I didn't like it. Alright, no, I probably _would've_ liked it had so much weird stuff not already happened—had so many things not changed in so short a time. Right now, I just couldn't take this, and I fought off the urge to put on my nastiest face and just scream at each and every one of them.

After about ten minutes of walking in circles right past the darn thing over and over again, Gibby finally found the door Rodney had been talking about. Except it wasn't a door. It was a wall. A solid wall.

I groaned and walked up to it. My face had fallen in the time we were traveling and my façade crumbled. I was exposed as the upset, tired, and all-around pessimistic person I felt like being right now. Right now, I was just a girl who missed her home, and missed her friends. I pounded on the wall. It wasn't hollow and it didn't look like there was anyway in. Maybe Rodney had just sent us on a goose chase to shove us off his hands.

I turned around to see Shane throw up his hands and clap them back at his sides. "That's it. There's no way we're getting in."

Gibby shook his head. "I don't think there's even anywhere to get in _to_," he said, sighing exasperatedly. Well, what do you know; the shirtless dweeb and I were on the same wavelength.

"Yeah," I said, taking one last look at the fire emblem. "Let's just try to find Spencer or so—" I cut myself off as a thought came to me. "Wait a second." I took a few steps back and looked at the wall again. "That's gotta be it," I said shaking my head.

"What's gotta be it?" asked Shane with furrowed eyebrows.

"Gibby, what spells do you know?"

"W-Well, I wouldn't say I _know_ them, I can just kinda _perform _them, and—"

I yelled in his face. "What _spells,_ dweeb?!"

His eyes went wide as saucers as he gripped his pants, prepared to fight off any attempted wedgie. "I know thunder, cure, fire, blizz—" he was yelling, nervously, but I interrupted him. I had figured out the way in.

"That's it!" I yelled, gripping his shoulders and shaking him in happiness.

But he probably thought it was in anger as _he_ shook himself and let out a yell before asking, "What's it?!"

I let go of him and gestured to the wall. "You have to use fire on it!"

Gibby was still shaking, his hands trying to guard every vulnerable inch of him at once. "What? But I—"

"Just do it!" I shouted.

"Okay, just don't hurt me!" he yelled back.

"Only if you _do it_ already!" I was starting to get frustrated and I noticed I bared my teeth.

"Okay!" And then he looked at the soon-to-be door. (I could've sworn I heard Shane snickering behind us during this whole thing.)

I stared too in excitement.

"Fire!" He shouted, and instantly a victorious little tone that sounded like it could be a cell phone ringer played.

We all looked around bewilderedly, but the red curtain that was now in front of us soon snagged my attention. Grinning like a maniac, I ran inside.

Inside, it looked like a swamp, and I distinctly heard an owl hooting away in the background. In front of me lay a small body of water, with stepping-stones leading to an even smaller hut.

I bypassed the stones—it would've taken too long that way—and just ran straight through the water. I didn't care how deep it was or how clean it was. Something inside the hut was drawing me to it, and I was excited to answer its call.

I heard Gibby and Shane call for me, telling me to wait, but I didn't stop. I just kept running until I was on the shore, and then walked hurriedly until I found the entrance of the hut.

When I stepped inside…I was in the iCarly studio. And I confusedly shut the door behind me.

"Oh good!" Carly called from near the back window. "You're here," she beamed.

"Uh, yeah," I nodded slowly and tried my best to put on a smile. I was happy to see her. Seriously, I was. How could I not be? But really, what the hickory-smoked ham was going on here?

Carly had her attention to the wall ahead of her. "I was thinking this was a good place to put it." She moved herself to the left so I could she what she was talking about and turned back to me. "How's it look?"

She had placed the iWeb Award on a shelf so that it would be right in almost every shot of iCarly we could ever do. I smiled genuinely. "Nice, kid."

Carly smiled brightly and laughed. "I thought you'd like it." She looked back at the wall. "Ohhh, fladoodles. There's a lose nail here in the shelf. Sam," she reached back. "Can you just hand me the hammer from the table?"

"Sure thing, Carls." I nodded as I headed for the table and picked up the hammer.

"Sam…?" Gibby asked.

I turned around. And everything was gone. Including Carly. I _wasn't_ in the iCarly studio. I was just in some empty, small room, holding a hammer. I looked down to see that, no, wait, that was gone, too. My face and tone and attitude and—everything fell.

"Who were you talking to?" Shane asked, cocking an eyebrow towards me.

I lowered my head turning my gaze to the ground. "No one," I said in an empty voice.

At that moment, a fireball appeared out of nowhere and lit a lamp _just_ behind my head. We all gasped and looked up, ready to take our fighting stances in case we were being attacked.

"Ohoh!" laughed a deep voice. "Well, this is quite a surprise! I wasn't expecting to see you three so soon."

There in front of us, in a blue wizard robe and hat, stood Principal Franklin.

--

**AN: Whoa, sorry for making you wait, people! Hope you really liked this and that it wasn't boring. I sure hope I kept everyone in character. Eee! Some really exciting things are coming up and I can't wait to write them all down so you can see them! I'd like to thank you all for your amazing and kind reviews! Each and every one of you! After I upload each chapter, I look forward to hearing from my readers, and a few of you especially—KJ, Sharkofthemist, Tenudra, Sadame—thank you all so much for sticking with me and reading and reviewing! I look forward to hearing your feedback on this chapter, guys! ^^**

**PS—Saw iKiss tonight. Was it not amazing? Especially the ending scene. "Hey…I hate you –smile-" "-scoff and smile- I hate you, too." Just plain beautiful. Wonder if anyone else caught that the song that was playing when they kissed spoke about change ;D**

**Anyway, that's all for now! **

**-Fictions**


	8. Chapter 8

Summary: When Carly, Sam, and Freddie buy a new video game from a shady shop, just how crazy will things get when they try to play it?

Disclaimer: I don't own iCarly or Kingdom Hearts. Those works are respectively Dan Schneider's and Tetsuya Nomaru's. …Whoa, déjà vu. Anyone else feel that?

iFight For the Light: Chapter 8

Sigh. After Principal Franklin had magic-ed up three chairs for us, we sat there for about an hour recounting our individual stories that led us to where we were now. And all we _got_ out of it was, "Amazing! I mean, of course I knew all of this beforehand, but it was purely entertaining to hear your renditions of your stories!"

I groaned. "If ya knew, why'd you make us tell you all over again?"

Gibby joined in. "Yeah, we coulda been resting!"

Principal Franklin shook his head. "Oh, no, no, no. The time for rest is later. You'll have to do some training first."

I could've sworn we all slumped over in our chairs at the same time and let out a group "ug."

"But I told you why I made you repeat it! It was entertaining! And interesting to see what you chose to lie about."

Shane raised an eyebrow. "What are you talking about, Principal Franklin?"

Ted's lips twitched up into a smile. "Is that what you three see me as? I'm quite flattered." Then he stood up. "Well, for example, Shane, you left out the part where after you had just awoken here, you cried about missing your security blanket."

Gibby scoffed. "Dude, I wasn't awake for that, but I wish I was, haha!"

Principal Franklin turned to the shirtless mathlete. "You cried, too Gibby—but over your stuffed peanut doll, Mr. Chimmy, instead."

Gibby's face paled and I just burst into laughter. "You guys," I said in between laughs. "You're such babies it's unbelievable."

"And you, Sam." Principal Franklin's voice cut through my laughter and silenced it immediately.

"What?" I asked, hesitantly.

"You lied about the whole cave ordeal," he said stepping closer to me. "You said that inside, there were numerous chalk drawings of you with different types of meat."

"Well…yeah, that's what was there." I shrugged. What did it matter anyway? It was just a stupid cave.

"No. What was there were numerous memories of yours—memories containing Freddie."

Gibby's eyes widened and so did Shane's. They shared a shocked glance.

I felt my cheeks burn, and I tried to bite them to stifle the blush that I knew was imminent. Why was I blushing? I had _nothing _to be embarrassed about. "So? What's the big deal, huh?" I asked, angrily.

Ted's face went completely serious and his voice went stern. "When you lie, you forget the truth, Sam." He turned away from us. "And you must never forget that truth."

I glared. I'd never been angry at Principal Franklin before but, well, there was a first time for everything. "_What_ truth?" I asked, standing.

"You know." He looked back at me, but didn't turn around.

"No I _don't_ know!"

"Deep down, you _do_." He faced away from us again. "And at some point you will realize that."

I didn't know why, but something about what he said and the way he said it made me sit back down. I was instantly calm again.

"So," he turned back to us, smiling again. "A little practice now, I think, and then you'll all have your rest."

"What kind of practice?" Gibby asked with a tilted head.

"Why, magic practice, of course."

"Hah!" I laughed, throwing my legs over the arm of the chair I'd been sitting in and putting my hands behind my head. "Have fun, math boy."

"You misunderstand, Sam," Ted shook his head.

After pausing for a moment, I sat up straight and narrowed my eyes. "Whatchu talkin' 'bout, Franklin?"

"Gibby is practically a master at magic already." And then he said the words I'd dreaded. Because you all have _no idea_ how desperately I needed to sleep. "The training is for _you_."

I groaned. "Why do _I _need to learn magic?"

"Well, what would you do if you didn't have Gibby with you?"

Shrugging, I said, "I dunno, cheer?"

Principal Franklin sighed. "But what if you need to heal?"

I lowered my eyebrows. "I know a guy who sells potions!"

"Well, you're out of potions!" he shouts, snapping his fingers.

"Psh, no I'm not—" But as I reach into my pocket, I discover he's telling the truth. "Hey…how did you--?"

"Magic," he grins. "And I can teach you. But you have to be willing to learn."

Sighing exasperatedly, I give in. I stand and throw my hands out. "Fine. Whatever. Teach me."

"Good," Ted smiles.

After training for what felt like hours in the attic I was sure Principal Franklin _didn't_ have when he came in, we finally got back downstairs to find Gibby and Shane sound asleep in beds. Ted must've conjured them up for the dweebs while we trained.

"I have to say, Sam, you did extraordinarily well." Principal Franklin smiled warmly at me.

"Thanks," I said, plopping down on the last vacant bed. "So I can rest now?"

"For a few minutes, yes," Ted nodded. "But it'll be a while before you can truly relax and sleep."

My mouth hung open and I glared. "Why?!" I shouted in annoyance. Seriously, what was wrong with letting me get a little shut-eye, huh?

Ted shrugged as he placed his wand on a table in the center of the room. "Because I'll be waking you all shortly." He turned to me and his smile had grown saddened—regretful. "You're on a journey, remember? You must keep going."

My face fell. I didn't want to say anything, but this journey scared me. All this talk of darkness, and importance, and my supposed greatness was just too much for me to take. And for the first time ever, I was facing a problem with_out_ Carly and Freddie. And it wasn't a little dinky problem either. Sure, Shane and Gibby were nice, but they couldn't replace my best friends. For the first time in my life, I truly felt alone—hopeless.

I looked up. "Principal Franklin," I began in a broken tone. "Can I speak to you for a second?"

He looked at me and nodded. "Certainly. Let's just go outside so we don't wake your comrades."

"Okay," I said and followed him out to the swamp. "I…don't think I can do this." My gaze had gone to the ground.

"What do you mean?" Ted asked.

"This whole…_thing_," I said frustrated and raised my head, but my eyes did not meet his. "Saving the worlds and junk! I can't do this!"

"But you always speak of how great you are."

"Well, _yeah_!" I shouted like it was obvious. "Back home. And I believed it, too, but back home no one expects anything of me. Back home I feel like I _can_ do anything. But here…" I broke off, lowering my head again. I bit my lip and I felt my face tense. I wore an expression as if I were in pain.

Principal Franklin just stood there waiting for me to continue.

"Here," I said hesitantly. "Everyone expects me to be this miracle worker. They expect me to be their hero, their _savior_. Me, who couldn't even manage a C average at school. Me, who flunked the third grade." I felt my throat swell up and my tone changed. My vision became cloudy as I noticed the tears filling my eyes, but I couldn't stop. "Me, whose greatest pastimes include eating meat and bothering some stupid computer nerd." I sniffled and felt my mouth pull down as I actually looked at Ted. "I can't be the hero," I shook my head. "I can't. I just want to go home, where everything's normal—where my friends are, and the only thing I have to do is be _me_."

"Sam," Principal Franklin spoke softly and shook his head. "You must _never_ doubt yourself. You must always believe in your abilities."

I shook my head in return, choking back a sob. "How can I when everyone expects so much of me?" I clenched my eyes shut. "Why can't I just go home?"

Ted sighed. "You know, I'm reminded of a poem. It's called 'Stopping By Woods On a Snowy Evening' by Robert Frost. And the poem's last stanza goes, 'The woods are lovely, dark and deep…But I have promises to keep…And miles to go before I sleep, and miles to go before I sleep.'"

"So?" I asked, rubbing my nose. "What does that have to do with me?"

"Sam, saving the worlds is not the _only_ thing you set out to do." I was silent and just stared at the face of my principal. His face was completely serious—comforting, but serious. "You made a silent vow before you left the Destiny Islands. You vowed that no matter what, you would find and save your friends." He smiled lightly. "So, while going home—while giving up seems tempting…you have a promise to keep."

I felt my tears halt. Ted smiled brighter and put a hand on my shoulder.

"And you have quite a journey ahead of you."

I shook my head. "But I…I feel so _alone_—"

"But you're not." He interrupted.

"What do you mean?" I asked in confusion.

"Well, not only do you have Gibby and Shane right in there for you," he motioned with his head. "But you'll always have Carly and Freddie with you. In your heart." Principal Franklin placed a hand on his chest. "If you keep the ones you love and care for in your heart and mind—keep them in your memories, the place where heart and mind meet—you will _never_—" he smiled brightly. "—never be alone."

I felt my face—no, my whole being glow with the warmth that I had last felt in the cave of memories. Placing a hand on my own chest, I smiled brightly, and sniffled back any of the remaining tears I might've had. In that moment, I knew—

I could do this.

Principal Franklin patted my shoulder. "Now go on and get some rest before you head off again, alright?"

I nodded. "Alright." And as I was heading back inside, I turned to him. "Thank you, Principal Franklin."

"You don't have to thank me, Samantha," he beamed. "I just told you what, deep down, you already knew."

I was in a much better mood once I lay down. Suddenly, I was excited about the journey I was about to embark on. And as I rested in the dim room in silence, my mind drifted back to memories of the past. I sifted through the vaults of my brain, and replayed random debates in my head, and iCrush Its, and Hey, Guess What I'm Sitting Ons, and iHave A Questions. My mind went into overdrive when I hit the Wake Up Spencers.

I suddenly remembered the last one we had filmed before being sucked into the game. It was the first one we'd shot since Freddie's voice got deeper, and for some reason Spencer seemed to get…more annoyed by us than any other time. Probably the whole idea of having another man in his room, haha.

I froze in my bed as I approached that thought. Freddie was a man now. Boy, it was shocking to _think_ that let alone say it, so I probably never would. Not to the dork's face anyway. But, it was true. Freddie _was_ a man now. A man just like Jake Crandall, although there was no doubt he had to be able to sing better than him.

I scoffed at my mental quip, but then my thoughts returned to the pattern they had just been on. He was a man just like Shane, although there was no doubt he was smarter than him. I felt my face go blank—completely relaxed as my thoughts continued to wander and my eyelids slowly began to fall. He was a man just like Gary Wolff, but there was no doubt he was cu—

I shot up. I couldn't fall asleep. I suddenly had to get outside. I had to get outside _now_. But just as I was about to run, the flame in the lamp burned brighter.

Gibby and Shane groaned as they rubbed their eyes and sat up.

Ted walked through the door. "Oh, good. I was just about to get you all up."

I kept my blank, determined look about me as Gibby and Shane glared in annoyance.

"But before you leave, I'd like you to take some things with you." Principal Franklin turned around to his table and grabbed some items off of it. When he turned back to us, he handed me a metal, clawed glove and a note. "Be sure to give that note to Leon—"

"You mean Spencer," I corrected.

"Oh, yes, of course. Spencer," he amended. "Be sure to give that note to Spencer. He'll be waiting in a house at the top of the ramp that's just outside. But be careful," Ted warned. "What you see may shock you. Calm yourself and think clearly—do what you think is right."

Gibby nodded. "I think we know how to take care of heartless, Principal Franklin."

Ted shook his head. "I don't think you and I are on the same mental wavelength, Gibby."

"Well," Shane began. "Then what's out there, sir?"

"You will see." Franklin nodded once.

"Okay, fine, so something dangerous is licking its lips and waiting for us, but—" I held up the metal glove in my hand. "—what the heck is this thing for?"

A slow grin formed on Principal Franklin's face. "It's just something you may need in the future." I saw a glint of something in his eyes, but I couldn't place it before he was shoving us out the door. "Now, go. Your journey awaits."

My excitement suddenly returned and I flew (figuratively speaking) across the water.

"Hey!" Shane called. "Sam! Wait up!"

I heard Gibby groan. "Oh, not again!"

Franklin was right. What was waiting for us was _not_ what we expected. Because when I got outside what I saw was—

"Hey, Sam," he laughed. He had his hands in his pockets and a half-smile on his face. "Where's the fire?"

"Freddie!" I couldn't help but shout in exhilaration as I smiled. For some reason, his half-smile didn't make me angry this time. In fact, it had the opposite reaction—it made me happier than I'd been in a long time. But then my face turned hard with skepticism. "You're real, right? I'm not hallucinating this time?"

Freddie's smile—which I'd just noticed had gotten wider from when he had greeted me—fell and he raised an eyebrow. "Why would you hallucinate about me?" Then he shook his head. "Why would you hallucinate at _all_?"

Have to admit, the dork asked some good questions. Too bad I didn't have any good answers.

When I heard the pattering of footsteps behind me, I was glad. Because that meant I was off the hook. At least for now.

The footsteps came to a halt as I heard Gibby shout, "Freddie! What's up, man?"

Shane smiled excitedly. "Whoa, dude! Good to see ya!" He reached over as he pounded fists with Freddie.

"Not much!" Freddie called, happy to see his old friends as well, probably. "I was just scouting the worlds, looking for Carly and Sam when I spotted her." He turned to me, pointing, but grinning. "You're kinda elusive, ya know that? I had to talk to about three people to find you, and every time I spoke to someone they said, 'Oh, sorry, you just missed her.'"

He was looking for me, too… Wait, he hadn't found Carly yet? So he was looking for _me_ first?

No, that probably wasn't it. He was _probably_ looking for Carly but once he heard I was in the area…Still, he was looking for me. And for some reason, that thought made my cheeks hurt—like I'd been smiling too much or something. I decided to set that thought aside, though. The idea of Freddie catching me blushing didn't really sit well with me. I had to say something. This silence was going on for way too long. "You're looking for Carly?" I asked before realizing how stupid that sounded. Uh, duh, he was looking for Carly. He was in _love_ with her, idiot.

Freddie furrowed his brows in confusion and did my head-tilt thing. "You're not?" he asked.

I felt my face go blank and I nodded. "We…haven't really had the time."

Freddie's stare got more intense as he crossed his arms. I almost laughed out of nervousness. Why was the dork able to make me do that? Almost nothing ever made me nervous—_especially_ not Freddie.

"But hey!" I started up again, smiling. "We're both still trying to find her, right?" I put out my hands in a quizzical way. "Why don't we team up and look for her together?"

To my surprise, Gibby protested lowly. "No way, Sam."

My eyes widened. "What?" I asked as I turned around.

Gibby was glaring and shaking his head. "I said, 'No way.' I'm not traveling with him. If he's in the group, then I'm out."

I turned back to Freddie and put on a huge everything's-okay/in-denial smile. "Just…excuse us for one sec, Freddo," I said as I gave him a thumbs-up and then pulled both Gibby and Shane aside. "What do you _mean_ 'no way'?" I whispered, wearing a threatening expression. Did the dweeb forget who the leader of this group was?

"I meant what I said," Gibby said, sternly, his eyebrows lowered into a serious expression. But then his face softened. "Sam, there's something…not right about Freddie."

I raised an eyebrow, still not breaking my glare. "What do you mean, dweeb?"

Gibby clenched and unclenched his fists, looking around. "I dunno. But there's just something weird about him. And I don't trust it." Then he titled his head to the side. "Don't you guys feel it?"

Shane's gaze met the floor as he furrowed his eyebrows. "Ya know, now that you mention it, something really_ does_ seem off about him."

"_What_?" I asked rhetorically. Then I rolled my eyes. "There's _nothing_ off about Freddie. He's just being his normal dorky self." And it was true. If anyone here would notice anything weird about Freddie, it'd be me, right? I was the one who knew him the best, here. Unless…maybe I just didn't want to see it? No. I shoved that thought aside and stood my ground. "Now if you wanna leave, fine. Freddie's coming with us and that's final. Heck, I don't care if _both_ of you go. Write me a postcard from whatever oblivion you end up in."

Gibby and Shane looked sadly at me. Then they turned to look at each other once before Gibby sighed. "Alright, Sam. We'll stay."

"Good," I answered, and I meant it. I didn't want to have to lose Gibby and Shane. They were kind of cool. But if that's what it took for Freddie to be able to travel with me—to have one of my two best friends back that I missed so much, then so be it. So, I turned back to face Freddie. "Alright, Freddork, it seems—"

But he was gone.

I stood there, frozen. "You guys…saw him here, didn't you?" I asked hesitantly.

Gibby spoke in the same exact shocked tone as I did. "Yeah, we saw him here alright…"

Shane followed suit. "We just…didn't see him _leave_."

After a second or two of silence and staring, I heard Gibby's feet shuffle on the ground. "We…should get to that house Principal Franklin told us about."

Shane must've nodded in agreement. "Yeah," he said as I heard the pair of footsteps walk off.

But I stayed still. Ted's words echoed in my head. _"What you see may shock you. Calm yourself and think clearly—do what you think is right."_ Had I done that? Had I done what was right?

…Had I had enough _time_ to?

"Sam?" Shane called from the top of the ramp. "You coming?"

He and Gibby both wore saddened and concerned faces. I wanted to smile—to assure them that everything was alright. But I couldn't. I just nodded blankly, and in a tone that matched my voice, said, "Yeah. Be right there."

And then I walked with them, allowing Freddie to disappear all over again. What could I do? I couldn't just stop. There were people that were depending on me. I couldn't just freeze forever because of some personal issue. It's then that I wondered when I really started caring about other people, but I couldn't exactly pinpoint the moment.

Spencer opened the door before we could knock. "Come on in, you guys," he said, motioning us inside.

In the house were Spencer, Shannon, and Mrs. Benson. My face still felt blank and my voice was just as empty as it had been before as I took out the letter from Principal Franklin. "Principal Franklin wanted us to give this to you…" I said, handing the piece of paper over.

Spencer took the note from my hand but looked over at Shannon with a questioning look before reading it.

Shannon smiled. "She's probably speaking of Merlin," she replied while nodding.

"Oh," Spencer said in return as he opened the note. His eyes skimmed the page and as they did, his expression became more and more tightened. After he'd finished reading the message, he dropped his arms to his sides and sighed. "This isn't good," he said, shaking his head.

"What is it?" Mrs. Benson asked, her eyes wide as normal and her tone concerned.

"Malificent's been spotted."

Shannon cupped her hands over her mouth in shock, and Mrs. Benson gasped.

"Who's Malificent?" Gibby asked, shaking his head.

"She's an evil, manipulative witch," Spencer answered.

There was a pause. "Don't you mean bi—" Shane began but was cut off.

"No, I mean 'witch,'" Spencer stared seriously. But after a second or two, added, "But she's that, too."

Shannon removed her hands from her face and placed them over her heart. "You must be very cautious of her."

Mrs. Benson nodded. "Try to stay away from her at all costs!"

Shane nodded. "Alright, what does she look like?" he asked.

"Well," Spencer began. "She's green," he said with his hands out. "So, she shouldn't be too hard to pick out in a crowd—"

Shannon cut him off. "Remember, Spencer, she may not look the same to them as she does to us."

"Oh." Spencer's mouth froze into the little 'o' it made when sounding out the word. "Then," he rubbed his head. "We don't really know what she looks like."

I saw Gibby glare and then roll his eyes. "Well, that's helpful."

Suddenly, a ringing sound filled the room. It drowned out everything else, and I couldn't hear anything but it. In front of me, I saw Spencer glare in return, and his lips moved as if he were speaking, but I couldn't hear over the ringing…

Shannon looked as if she giggled and said something else. I felt my face tense in frustration.

"…_can't believe…" _a voice echoed over the ringing. _"…friend…trusted…" _it continued. Strange—it sounded exactly like Freddie's voice.

"…_lied…clear as day…" _another voice spoke—a female voice. A _familiar_ female voice. _"…told you…doesn't care at all…"_

My vision swirled and it was becoming hard to breathe. Taking labored breaths, I noticed I felt the ground on my knees. Spots appeared in my eyes—little black spots that dotted out my vision 'til I couldn't see anymore. I felt my breathing accelerate—felt the pair of hands on my arms, and the other pair of hands shake me by my shoulder.

Soon, I felt the carpet of the floor on my face, and I faded from consciousness. I only heard one thing after that.

"_Everything she says is a lie, Freddie…"_

--

**AN: Whoa! Chapter 8 already, guys! I hope you're all enjoying reading this as much as I'm enjoying writing it ^^ This chapter was so amazing to write. Really guys, the stuff is starting to write itself. I hope you all really liked this and I can't wait to hear from you all in your reviews! That's all for now!**

**-Fictions**


	9. Chapter 9

Summary: When Carly, Sam, and Freddie buy a new video game from a shady shop, just how crazy will things get when they try to play it?

Disclaimer: If I own iCarly and Kingdom Hearts, then I'm the Easter Bunny…I'm…not the Easter Bunny, by the way. iCarly is owned by Dan Schneider and Kingdom Hearts is owned by Tetsuya Nomaru

iFight For the Light: Chapter 9

What the…? I was already standing. And I was outside. But, I couldn't move and I couldn't speak. What the heck _was _this?

"I can't believe it…" Freddie called, and suddenly, he was in front of me, staring into the window of a house. It was the house that _we_ were in. And as I took a more careful look, I noticed we still _were_ there, and I was still standing. Seriously, what was happening here…? "She was my friend—I _trusted_ her," he said in a hurt voice. Wait, hurt? Why does he even _care_? "I can't believe she's not even looking for Carly…"

"Well, believe it," the female voice from before spoke, and as she walked into my line of sight, I realized why her voice sounded so familiar. It was _Valerie_. And she had on this purple dress and a black cloak. "She _lied_ to you, Freddie. It's clear as day," she said with morbid cheer in her tone.

"She said that they just didn't have time to look for Carly yet," he said, defending me. He turned around and nodded. "That's probably it."

"Oh, yeah, because what they're doing now looks _so_ important," Valerie said, rolling her eyes.

I wanted to shake my head. No, what I _wanted_ was to ruin that pretty face of Valerie's right here, and now. But I couldn't.

Freddie looked back, and I saw him tap his foot—something I noticed he did when he was taking part in a really serious and confusing situation, and trying to decide upon something. "I guess you're right," he said sighing and shaking his head.

No, Freddie…How could you believe her…?

"But, _why_?" he asked shaking his head. "Why would she do that? It doesn't make any sense."

"Oh, Freddie." She rolled her eyes, but still remained smiling brightly. "There are many reasons. I told you, she's lazy. She only does what's best for _her_. "

He walked toward Valerie in protest. "But Carly _is_ what's best for her! _I'm_ what's best for—" he broke off, looking startled at his own words and then began another sentence. "We're her best friends. How could she just shove us aside like that?"

"Oh, silly boy." Valerie laughed. "Look right in front of you," she said, stretching out a hand. "She has two _new_ friends to have fun with. She doesn't need _you_ anymore."

He looked back to the window and shook his head. "No. No, she cares!" he shouted, spinning back around to her. " I can tell! And she said—"

"She _lied_," Valerie cut him off. "She always does." She shook her head and donned one of the _fakest_ expressions of sincerity I've _ever_ seen. "Don't you realize?" Valerie walked to him and rested a seemingly gentle hand on his cheek and stared into his eyes. "Everything she says is a lie, Freddie."

No…No, Freddie. Not to you. Don't believe her, you stupid nub!

But his face softens. And he stares right back. The dork! He _does_ believe her! What an idiot! I suddenly have the urge to beat the stuffing out of him. How could he think that of me?! …Why am I _this_ offended?

Suddenly, he turns back to glance at the window once more. I look, too. I see myself inside. It looked like I had just fallen to my knees. Shane's got my arm and Gibby's gripping my shoulders and shaking me. Spencer is looking at Shannon nervously, and Mrs. Benson is kneeling in front of me.

Freddie takes a step forward. "What's happening to her?" he shouts as he begins to walk-run his way to the house.

But Valerie's hand catches his arm before then. "Why bother?" she asks quietly.

Freddie turns to face her. He doesn't say anything but I can see that his breathing has sped up again.

Tell her to let _go_, Freddie!

Valerie shrugs. "She obviously doesn't care about _you_." She tilts her head. "So why care about her?"

She lets go of him. But he just walks to stand at her side. He's still breathing heavy, though, and staring at the window. It's as if there's some powerful force that's keeping him in place when he _really_ wants to run.

Valerie's staring at him while this is happening, smiling. "Freddie," she calls to him, but he doesn't change his focus. All she does is smile wider. "I know where Carly is."

Freddie's eyes widen and his breathing returns to normal as he turns to look at Valerie.

She giggles. "And I can give you a way to get to her."

No, Freddie. You're smarter than this. Come on, dork, come on, dork, come on, dor—

"How?" he asks, his face nothing but serious.

Stupid! That's what you are, Freddie! You're _stupid_! And when I get my hands on you, I'll…I'll….

My thoughts are starting to sound more gurgled—as if I'm slurring my speech, only, I'm not speaking…

Suddenly, there's this big blinding light that just floods the whole scene.

And next thing I know, my eyes are fluttering open. The first thing I see is Mrs. Benson looking directly at me.

I blink in confusion and suddenly she's bouncing. "She's awake! She's awake!" she calls excitedly, with this relieved expression on her face.

"Thank goodness," Shannon says calmly, coming into my line of sight.

Spencer, as I sit up to see, is leaning on the wall in the back, smiling sheepishly. "Sorry we couldn't find anything softer to put you on."

That's when I realized I was laying down on a table. I grin and shrug. "S'okay. It was always soft enough for _you_ to lay on."

He just blinks and looks at me as if he has no idea what I'm talking about. Which he doesn't. Stupid alternate universe thing…

I turned around to see Gibby and Shane on the other side of me. They were staring with worry in their eyes, and when Gibby spoke, his tone was low—as if he were frightened speaking too loud might break me. I wanted to roll my eyes, but I didn't. For once the urge to be nice overpowered my urge to tease.

"Are you okay, Sam?" he asked. "We were kinda worried…"

Shane nodded slowly and spoke only a _little_ bit louder than the math freak. "Yeah, what happened?" he asked with a tilted head as he absently fiddled with his hands.

"Well," I sat up fully now, sighing, and explained the whole thing to them—what had happened, what going unconscious felt like, what I dreamt—the whole shebang. At the end, everyone was silent and had concern written all over their faces—even Gibby and Shane, but Spencer, Shannon, and Mrs. Benson left them in the dust as far as concern went.

"But, it probably didn't mean anything, right?" I asked, shrugging and looking around awkwardly. "It was just a dream." But no one answered. And no one's expressions changed, either. "Right?" I tacked on after another second of silence.

Mrs. Benson spoke up first. "We don't really know _what_ it was," she said, throwing her arms to the side to emphasize her confusion. "But whatever it was, it wasn't good."

Spencer nodded in agreement. "And whatever it was, I don't think we should just write it off as nothing."

Shannon stepped forward. "We really believed this could wait, but now it seems we've been proven wrong." She sighed. "We need you to seal the heart of this world so that no more darkness may contaminate it."

"And," I began, doing my patented head-tilt and putting my hands out questioningly. "How do I do that?"

"Well, that part's pretty simple," Spencer answers. "The keyhole—the door to the world's heart—has a spot where it connects to the world's surface. Once you find that area, you just point your keyblade at it and, well, things should carry themselves along from there."

"Alright," I hopped up from the table and leaned on it. "So, where is this keyhole?"

Shannon's face fell. "We're not exactly sure."

"But we suspect that it has something to do with the bell," continues Spencer.

"Bell?" Shane asks.

"Yeah. It's close—at the center of the town."

Shannon has her arms dropped in front of her, but her hands linked. "But since the heartless arrived, it's stopped ringing."

Mrs. Benson nods in agreement. "It used to ring every hour on the hour. We assume the darkness may be blocking it."

I roll my eyes. I can't hold my true self back from Mrs. Benson. The others, fine. But it's that Benson blood that just riles me up. "So let me get this straight," I start. "You've had that big assumption for this whole time and you haven't even _tried_ to check out if it's right or not?"

Mrs. Benson groaned exasperatedly at my words. "Well, if it _did _reveal the keyhole, it wouldn't do any good! We don't have a key, we couldn't seal it!" she yelled frantically. "If we had revealed it, it just would've decreased the amount of time it would eventually take for our world to erode as we know it!"

Sheesh, take a chill pill, lady. That woman should never _ever_ be allowed to walk around without being medicated…or maybe the other way around if she already takes medication. "Alright, alright. Calm down, okay?" I sad…er…asked. Whatever. "We'll go seal your keyhole. Just seal your _mouth_."

Mrs. Benson gave that wide-eyed mothering look—the look that was supposed to strike fear in any child. I, however, was no child. I was _also_ immune. Seeing the look was having no effect on me, Mrs. Benson turned to Spencer and Shannon for help.

"Please," Shannon pleaded sincerely. "If you could get there as quickly as possible…"

I instantly returned to serious mode. I remembered just how many people were counting on me, and nodded. "Yeah. Let's go you guys." I headed out of the house and Gibby and Shane followed right after.

Getting to that bell was no cakewalk. There were heartless everywhere—_different _ones; stronger ones—but eventually, we got to the ladder that would take us up to it.

When Gibby realized we'd have to climb there, he protested. "But I'm _afraid_ of heights!" he complained.

I swiveled my head to Shane. I'm not sure exactly what I expected—probably some sort of brave, motivational speech—but whatever it was, I didn't get it. When Shane said nothing, I just lowered my head and raised an eyebrow as if to say '_Really_?'

He looked embarrassed. "I've kind of been afraid of heights, too, after the whole—" he waved his finger up and down. "—elevator shaft incident."

Were they kidding me? These were supposed to be _guys_? They were supposed to help me save the _worlds_? Groaning, I rolled my eyes and biffed them both in the back of the head. "Come on, you babies!" I yelled, shoving them both up the ladder.

When we got up there, guess what we found! Nope, it wasn't a basket full of bacon, but I really wish it had been. But what were _really_ awaiting us was more heartless! Big surprise, right?

After we beat them, and actually got to take a look around—and after I was able to slap both Gibby _and_ Shane out of the shock of realizing just how high up we were—we noticed a random stack of crates.

"What are those for?" Gibby asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I dunno, Gibby," I said while looking at them, and then turned to face him. "But I do know one thing."

When I didn't continue, he asked, "What?"

"That if someone comes claiming them, I'm gonna say you did it."

"Did wha--?"

I cut him off as I brought out my keyblade and instantly smashed the boxes.

He stared wide-eyed at me.

"That!" I replied, smiling widely. When he didn't move, I rolled my eyes. "Don't tell me I'm gonna have to slap you again."

"No! No you don't!" Gibby yelled, running behind Shane.

"You really like hitting things, don't you?" Shane asked, nodding.

"Yeah I do, got a problem with that?" I asked him while stepping dangerously close.

Shane stared down at me with fear in his eyes. Like I said before, some normalcy felt good. "I--…um-…" Shane stuttered nervously and then pointed. "Look! Over there!"

It was probably a trick, but I turned around anyway. I knew I was faster than the kid so even if he did try to run away, I'd catch up to him. Being that what he'd said and the way he'd said it was very distraction-y, you can imagine my surprise when I did what he said and something notable was _actually_ there.

Part of the wall was cut out, and inside rested a rope. And there in front of us, we had the way to ring the bell that supposedly hadn't tolled in so long. "Wow, there was actually something there," I heard Gibby whisper. And then he groaned, most likely after getting jabbed with Shane's elbow. Did I mention I have ears like a bat? 'Cause I do.

As I walked inside and gripped the rope, I turned back to the guys and it was as if they read my thoughts.

"I'll go guard the area while you're ringing the bell," Gibby said and then moved to the center of the roof and got into a ready fighting stance.

"And I'll go hug onto that pillar over there and keep a look-out to see if anything happens," Shane answered and did exactly what he said.

I couldn't help but smile a bit, because, well, I have to be honest—as a team, we were really coming together. And it felt nice—familiar. Like when Freddie, Carly, and me used to sit together and try to come up with ideas for iCarly.

I turned back to the rope. This was no time to be taking a walk down memory lane; there was a task at hand. I nodded, the old mission back in my mind, and tugged on the rope. I looked up as the loud, peaceful, yet somehow eerie bells chimed.

Shane hummed in disappointment. "Nothing really seemed to—whoa!"

I turned around quickly.

Whatever had shocked Shane, shocked him so badly that he had almost lost his grip on the pillar. "Something definitely changed alright! At the fountain!" Then he called, "Ring the bell again, Sam!"

So I did and quickly turned around to see Shane's reaction.

"It changed again!"

I groaned. "Any keyhole yet?"

"No," he shook his head. "Not yet. But give it another go, I mean, three's a lucky number."

"It is?" I asked, blinking.

Gibby sighed exasperatedly. "None of you guys can get any sayings right! _Seven's_ the lucky number, but _third time's the charm_." I didn't have to be facing him to know he rolled his eyes. I would've said something back, but I just didn't feel like fighting at the moment.

I just turned back to the rope and pulled once more.

Shane didn't shout this time. Instead, he turned around and called in a lower, more serious tone. "Sam, I think you should see this."

When I walked over, he kept his eyes on me. Probably watching to see my reaction. My eyes widened slightly and I nodded. "Whoa, nice."

Shane nodded in return. "So, there's our keyhole."

"Ahuh," I agreed. "And who's the guy in front of it?"

I had assumed the guy'd been standing there beforehand, but judging by Shane's shocked expression when I'd questioned him on the dude, I guess I was wrong.

Gibby walked over on my other side to see what we were talking about, his hands placed skeptically on his hips.

"I think—" Shane broke off, squinting in an attempt to see better. "Is that…?" he broke off again, tilting his head, this time. "Is that _Freddie_?" he finally managed to spit out.

"We should go down to talk to him," Gibby suggested with a nod.

"Okay," I agreed, dully—too occupied staring at the guy who was supposedly Freddie.

"Well? Come on," Gibby said, pointing. "Let's take the ladder."

But then I remembered how quickly Freddie had disappeared last time. And the time before that.

I couldn't let him slip away again. I put my arms around Gibby and Shane, and without changing my blank tone, replied, "Sorry, no time."

Gibby looked at me, suddenly panicked. "What do you mean by that?"

"One—" I began.

Gibby turned to Shane, his voice frantic. "What does she mean by that?!"

"Two—"

"Dude," Gibby shook his head. "I have a bad feeling about this!"

"I know!" answered Shane, just as shaken. "I have a hunch we're about to get over our fear of heights!"

Gibby's eyes widened in sudden realization. "_What_?!"

"Three." And at that, I jumped, pulling the two screaming knuckleheads along with me.

They fell gracefully on their faces—like a pair of swans, those two—while I managed to roll to my feet.

Freddie didn't turn around to greet me as I stood there, breathing shakily—exhilarated, like I always was when I saw him now. Whether it be from running through the icy water of a swamp, or jumping off the roof of a high building, or waking up inside a hallucination from being hit too hard in the head, I was always bouncing off the walls when I saw him. And I think I was beginning to understand why. But I didn't want to.

Still, he didn't turn around, and I got the distinct impression _someone_ was unhappy to see me.

--

**AN: Whoa, alright, so, a bit shorter than the last chapter. I really hope I left this off in a good place because big stuff's happening next chapter. I had some very interesting guesses over who thought Maleficent was gonna be ^^ I heard Carly, I heard Ms. Briggs…Bet I surprised you all there, didn't I, hmm? I really hope everyone was in character here. Gotta say, though Valerie's definitely "that too" as Spencer said in the last chapter, I love writing for her. It's really strange XD So, everyone! Thank you for reading and reviewing and I look forward to seeing your comments on this chapter! I'll get working as quick as I can on the next chapter of iFight For the Light ;D**

**-Fictions**


	10. Chapter 10

Summary: When Carly, Sam, and Freddie buy a new video game from a shady shop, just how crazy will things get when they try to play it?

Disclaimer: I wish I could come up with the genius that is these two fandoms ;_; But Dan Schneider and Tetsuya Nomaru already did that. I only own this story that combines them both.

iFight For the Light: Chapter 10

Alright, this is getting a little old. Someone has to say _something_. "Freddie?" I ask lowly, curiously.

After a pause, he speaks. "She was right," he says so low I almost can't hear him.

Suddenly, I'm reminded of his conversation with Valerie. But that was just a dream, right? I shake my head. I know I couldn't have heard what I thought I heard. "What?"

"I said, she was right," he repeated while turning around. Freddie's glaring at me harder than ever. "Valerie was right!"

"Valerie?!" I ask, surprise evident in my tone. I can feel Gibby and Shane's shocked eyes on me.

"She said you'd forgotten all about us—that you had new best friends, that you were just lying." His voice got softer. "I didn't want to believe her," he said, shaking his head slightly. "But she was right, Sam! You know, I should've seen it sooner; you've never been hard to read."

Each word cut like a dagger, and I fought to keep my voice steady as all my rage, anger…_pain_ bubbled to the surface. "Obviously I am hard to read, Freddork! Because that's all a lie! We're working on searching for Carly and—"

"_Really_?" he interrupts, completely disbelieving. "Is that what you call having chats with friends in little safe houses and jumping off of buildings? 'Cause I'd just call it wasting time!"

"We were _trying_ to seal the keyhole to this world so that no more darkness could get into it, you idiot!" I yell back. This is another one of those "pure anger" moments, and I don't like it one bit. But this time, there's no Carly to stop the fighting. There's no Carly to give us a time-out. There's no tree house for me to hide in and no waterfall to sing to me 'til I'm calm again.

"You were trying to _block_ the _darkness_?" Freddie asks in his rage. "Why would you try to _shun_ what just helped me find your _best friend_?" At this, he stepped aside to reveal Carly sitting on the floor. Her eyes were trance-ish, glazed over, dead—just like back on the island.

"Carly!" I called out. I wanted to reach for her but Freddie just stood in the way again and threw my outstretched hand back at me. Oh, that was it. I was going to beat his nerd butt to the ground. I stood right in his face, but he just glared down back at me. I bared my teeth, but even that had no effect.

"Or should I say _ex_-best friend?" He tilted his head and spoke with mock concern in his voice. "What's the matter, Sam? Got tired of having a conscience?"

"That's not it at _all_, Freddie!" I yelled, my voice slightly tinged with unintentional desperation. "Come on! You know that!" I noticed then that my voice was pleading. But why? I shouldn't be pleading. I should be kicking his butt all around the floor for what he said to me—about me. But I couldn't bring myself to do it. _Why_?

"You know what? I'm sick of your lies," he called back, his face so close it was almost touching mine. I just continued to stare. I couldn't break this time, even though my glare felt weaker than normal—tainted by some emotion that I didn't want. He finally walked backward and away from me. "Here, why don't I give you another new friend to play with?" he suggested as he snapped his fingers.

Instantly, I was face-to-face with my shadow. I couldn't help myself from being shocked—from being speechless as my dark reflection stared back at me, smirking.

I heard Gibby and Shane gasp from behind me. "He gave into the darkness!" Gibby yelled. "No wonder I had a bad feeling about him!"

"Freddie, dude!" Shane called, as if trying to reclaim his old friend from whatever dark emotion now clouded his mind. "What the hell?!" he asked, unable to contain himself.

But Freddie never took his concentration off of me. "Nothing left to say, Sam?" he asked. "Finally accepted the _truth_?"

I didn't answer. I couldn't. What would I say? What_ could_ I say? I just stared, blankly.

"Good," he ended. Then, Freddie reached down to pick up Carly as a swirling portal of darkness appeared behind him. "Now I have more important places to be—more important things to do. Like saving the one I really care about."

I thought I had been numbed by his words from before—that that was it and I wouldn't feel anymore—but I was proved wrong. His last sentence stung me, and I found it really difficult to hold back the tears that threatened to fall from my eyes.

"Do me a favor," Freddie said while backing into the portal. "Don't follow," his echoed, now-seemingly-disembodied voice called from the darkness.

And then with the portal, he was gone.

My gaze fell, and my whole body threatened to give-out on me. I wonder if this is what getting beaten up feels like. I wouldn't know—I was always on the other end of that whole thing. But now…I'd never felt this helpless—this weak.

I _was_ letting myself fall. Metaphorically speaking, of course. I was falling and guarding myself off with barriers of my own thoughts and memories. How could things have gotten _this_ _bad_?

Suddenly, Gibby and Shane broke through the icy cage of my sadness, their voices lifting me high up off the ground as they called my name in warning. And I lifted my head and keyblade just in time to block an attack from my shadow.

This fight was going to be easy, I decided. And I even told Gibby and Shane that when they offered to help me. But, please, I was fighting _myself_. I think I know my own weaknesses.

But that ended up being the _problem_. I knew myself—I knew my weaknesses, but so did the shadow. The shadow also knew my fighting style, and used a different one to fight for itself. The shadow's fighting style used a lot of moves I wasn't familiar with, not to mention how it occasionally sank into the ground and attacked me from behind.

I couldn't do it anymore. I couldn't go on fighting. As I began to fall, two bodies crashed into me—rushed me and grabbed my arms. They sat me on a bench, and I recognized Gibby's voice when he called out to heal me and then rushed into battle.

Shane patted me on the shoulder, and I looked up weakly at him. He smiled. "We'll take it from here, okay?" He didn't wait for an answer. I don't think he would've taken "No" anyway.

As I was left by myself on the bench, I felt my eyes sting as the tears I had held back from before broke through any walls of defense that I had still standing. And they weren't just the tears from now. I hadn't allowed myself to cry back on the Destiny Islands when Freddie disappeared, and I hadn't allowed myself to cry when I'd exited Principal Franklin's swamp. And I hadn't cried just now—just now when Freddie's words, and his face, and his tone took my soaring spirit and sent it crashing down to earth; just now when he'd broken me and all my exhilaration—broken me and all my hope.

So that's why I cried. Because I couldn't hold back my tears anymore. I wasn't strong enough to take all this emptiness, and all this change, and all this hurt.

Gibby might've healed me, but I still felt weaker than ever before. Principal Franklin's speech echoed through my head—about keeping Freddie and Carly in my heart. Sure I had kept Freddie in my heart, but right now, in reality, he was _gone_. He didn't _want_ to be in my memories. And that definitely hurt—definitely made me feel one step closer to being completely alone.

But then, I looked up to the fray happening before me. I saw Gibby and Shane and they were _destroying _the darkness—they were winning. The struggle actually brought a smile to my face.

Suddenly, I remembered Freddie's last words before he left—how he told us not to follow him—and there was that same strange background tone to his voice that he had had on the island. On the island where he had asked me to be his light in the darkness.

It was then that I knew what we had to do.

But as I was about to stand—to rejoin the fray—ringing filled my ears. I realized now that it was the ringing of the bell in my head. And I fell back facing the emptiness of the now starless sky 'til nothing but pure darkness filled my sight and I slipped away from consciousness.

The next thing I know, I'm standing again, but at least this time I know what's happening—I'm seeing another conversation between Freddie and Valerie. Only this time, I have no idea where this is taking place.

It's all dark around us. And when I say "dark," I mean just about pitch black. There are no lamps or lanterns or anything. There's this distinct "castle" feel to the place I'm in now, so I know we're not in Traverse Town. Traverse Town _is_ pretty medieval, but it's still _too_ modern for castles.

Freddie's on the ground panting in front of Valerie. She's just standing there, staring at him. She's not trying to do something to help him or anything! How could he have believed her over me? I mean, I know I've been a mess of a friend in the past, but if Freddork looked like _that_, there'd be no doubt I would him. He should've known that. Stupid nub.

"Freddie," she finally speaks, her tone stern. "You must not abuse your powers of darkness like that. If you do, it will swallow your heart. And you will lose yourself forever."

"But what do I do?" he asks desperately through shallow breaths. "I still need to be stronger than this. This isn't enough!"

"Well," Valerie gives a Cheshire Cat grin. "What you _really_ need to do is unlock your true potential."

Oh no…what does this kook have planned for him next?

Freddie's breathing's back to normal and he looks up at her. "How?" he asks, and I have this horrible sensation of déjà vu.

Stop it, you moron! Erg! You all have no idea just how badly I want to yell at this kid! Has he lost his _mind_? I mean, _really, Fredward_.

Valerie lets out a sickening giggle. "Stand up, Freddie," she commands with all the morbid cheer in the universe in her voice.

The stupid, crazy nub stands like she says to. She extends a hand and suddenly he's glowing green with some sort of energy. He just stays there with his arms outstretched and head back, sucking it all in.

Valerie's grin grows wider but Freddie's looking frustrated—pained. He's _still_ standing there, though!

"Move out of the way, you stupid dork!" I yell, and to my surprise, I think he hears me. 'Cause just before my eyes flashed open, I swear I saw his head shoot back up.

I instantly jolt up into a sitting position. My heart and breath are racing, and I turn to see someone next to me.

I almost let my fist fly at the guy when I notice that it's Rodney. He's got his hands up in a peaceful motion. "Easy there, kiddo," he says in a soothing tone. "Gibby!" he calls over his shoulder. "Fetch me that bottle right there, will ya?"

"This one?" Gibby calls back.

Rodney holds up his index finger to me and then turns around. "Yeah, that's the one."

Gibby walks over with it and hands it to Rodney. My old friend who goes by another name pours me a glass of the liquid that's inside the bottle and then pushes it over to me. "There. It's a potion. A strong one. Heard you got quite a beat-down out there, Sam."

"Yeah," I mutter, taking the glass. "Both physically _and_ emotionally."

It's silent and I turn around as I down the glass of liquid. Shane and Gibby are both averting their gazes, sadness written all over them.

Breaking the ice, I ask louder, "Where are we?"

Rodney puts his hands in his pockets. "The upper-part of my shop," he answers. "Heard you been passin' out a lot there, kid."

I'm not in the mood to play around right now. I don't laugh and I don't smile. All I do is reply in the most serious tone manageable. "I have to tell you what I saw."

Everyone's still for a second, but after that silent pause, Rodney nods. And I told him everything I "dreamt"—everything I saw, everything I heard, and everything I felt.

Rodney sighs after I finish talking. "Sounds like Hollow Bastion."

"What's Hollow Bastion?" Shane asks slowly.

"The place where we suspected might be the base for all of this heartless stuff." He nods. "Look guys, were you able to seal the keyhole here?"

Gibby and Shane's faces scrunch with guilt. "No," the shirtless one answers regretfully. "Sam passed out before she could."

"Alright," Rodney nods again. "You three go do that. I'll go get Spencer and the others. Meet us by the big doors here in the first district, okay?"

I nod. "Sure, Rodney."

He stands and heads for the door. Once he opens it, he turns around. "And be careful out there, kids. It's gonna be a rough trip."

He wasn't kidding. The heartless we faced on our way back to the keyhole had to have been the toughest we've ever seen. Well, maybe. Probably not as tough as the big suit of armor we had to fight but you get the picture.

As soon as we got to the now-changed fountain, I lifted my keyblade, as Spencer said I should. Suddenly, everything began to glow and a beam of light shot from the tip of the key turning the once hollow keyhole solid.

I smiled. "We did it."

Shane nodded. "Yeah, I was a bit nervous at that one point, though. Man, thank goodness we've got Gibby with us, right?"

Gibby laughed. "Dude, what are you talking about?" he asked, waving a hand. "What about that thing you did where you spun around like a top and hit _all_ those heartless down?"

"Yeah!" I tacked on. "And what about that one time where you two were reminiscing about stuff that happened about five minutes ago and then I totally kicked both of your butts because you were wasting time we didn't have?"

Shane furrowed his eyebrows. "I don't remember that…"

I let my face fill with mock amazement. "I must've seen the future!"

Gibby and Shane's eyes went wide with panic. Yeah, they knew how I could be.

I grinned. "The future, it's coming…now!"

Instantly they took off into a run back to the first district. Gibby screamed while he ran, but I laughed while I did. For some reason, I just had a good feeling running through me. It was probably due to the sudden absence of heartless in Traverse Town. It felt good to just be able to run free, and everything like that.

We came to a halt when we were approaching the big doors Rodney said we'd all meet by and saw what looked like a giant van with wings on it. "Whooooa, momma, what is _that_?" I asked.

"That," Spencer began, grinning. "Is your Gummi ship that will be flying you three to Hollow Bastion."

"The coordinates are already set," said Rodney, who shrugged while his hands remained in his pockets. "All you guys gotta do is get in and turn the thing on."

"Cool!" Gibby remarked jumping inside. "This thing has everything! It's got an instant sandwich maker! How awesome is that?"

Shane peered in the doorway. "Is that an interspatial capacitor?" he asked in astonishment, making his way inside.

Rodney nodded, walking over. "Yep," he laughed. "Nothing but the best for this thing." Rodney clapped a hand onto the Gummi ship and beamed proudly.

"Guys," I smiled. "How can I ever thank you?"

Shannon giggled. "Well, you could at least wait until we're done giving you gifts to figure that out."

"There's _more_?" Gibby asked enthusiastically as he poked his head out of the door.

"Mmhmm," nodded Mrs. Benson. "We're each going to touch our hands to the Gummi and give you a gift from deep in our hearts to help you along the rest of your journey."

Shannon beamed brightly and friendly. "A part of ourselves."

Shane stuck his head out, too, to see the gift giving. But that's when I noticed that someone was missing from the group. "Where's Pri—?" I wasn't even able to get half of the question out before Principal Franklin appeared before us.

"Sorry I'm late," he gave a frank nod. "I had to deal with an angry fairy godmother." Ted then turned to me and smiled warmly. "I'm glad I was able to make it in time to see you off, though."

"You're more in time than you think, Merlin," Spencer replies. "We're just about to give her our last gifts."

"Oh! Good!" Principal Franklin exclaims happily.

Rodney nods and starts off, putting his hand to the side of the Gummi. "For your journey, I give you the gift of stealth." Immediately, the place where his hand was began to glow a bright and shimmering orange.

"I give you the gift of strength," Spencer said, touching the Gummi and lighting it red.

"I give you the gift of agility!" Mrs. Benson said excitedly as she placed her palm on the Gummi's side. Her spot glowed a bright green.

Shannon smiled genuinely and warmly. "For your journey, I give you the gift of health." As Shannon placed her hand on the Gummi, the whole area turned a light pink.

"And finally," Principal Franklin spoke in his deep and authoritative voice. "I give you the gift of knowledge on your journey." When Ted put his hand on the ship, the whole _thing_ glowed a sky blue.

We said pretty normal goodbyes to everyone. I fist-pounded with Rodney, though he kind of had no idea what I was doing, and gave Spencer a pat on the back. I only waved to Shannon and then stuck my tongue out at Mrs. Benson. But when I got to Principal Franklin, I gave him a hug. What? He gave me that motivational speech that kept me going. Without him, I wouldn't have been so anxious to continue through this place. I might've just stayed here in Traverse Town and not cared at all when Freddie insulted me. Okay, maybe I'm over exaggerating, but what I'm trying to say is that he really helped me.

Ted was even a bit surprised by the hug, but he just squeezed back and smiled. When we broke the hug, he left a reassuring hand on my shoulder. "You can do this, Samantha," he said with not a hint of doubt in his voice. "I know you. You can overcome anything. And as long as you keep your friends in your heart, you will _definitely_ be able to get them back." When I frowned, he tacked on, "Even Freddie. Don't be so quick to dismiss him, Sam. There may be more to his actions than meets the eye."

I felt my mouth lift into an uncontrollable smile. That whole warm glow overtook me again and I slowly walked towards the Gummi. Before getting inside, I waved everyone a quick goodbye again.

"Sam," Ted called again.

I looked back to him.

"And miles to go before you sleep?" he asked, smiling brightly.

I couldn't help but beam and nod. "And miles to go before I sleep, Principal Franklin."

And then we were off, with no idea of what lay ahead of us, or what we were about to face. Only one thing was for sure—if we kept the ones we loved and cared about in our hearts, there was nothing we couldn't do.

--

**AN: There we go! Chapter 10 is done with. Are you guys feeling antsy about the stuff coming up? I've had it all planned for a while and I can't wait to write it for you all! Thank you so much again for your kind reviews! I'm so glad you all liked last chapter, and I hope you all like this one. Sorry if some parts were…eh. (I usually think that and then everyone ends up liking it anyway .) But yeah. Can't wait to hear your responses to this stuff! **

**-Fictions**


	11. Chapter 11

Summary: When Carly, Sam, and Freddie buy a new video game from a shady shop, just how crazy will things get when they try to play it?

Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah, yeah, I don't own iCarly and Kingdom Hearts. Stop rubbing it in. (iCarly is owned by Dan Schneider and Kingdom Hearts is owned by Tetsuya Nomaru.)

iFight For the Light: Chapter 11

The flight on the Gummi ship was interesting. It was really strange because as Gibby and Shane seemed to be having the time of their lives, I was scared stiff. I wasn't hopeless. I knew that I could do whatever I needed to. But I was still scared. There was just this feeling inside me—this feeling that said whatever was coming was something intense—something big.

Something I may not be ready for. But I _was_ ready for it. I knew I was, yet I felt differently. Does that make any sense? Probably not. I don't blame you guys for not getting it. Everything I was thinking—everything I was feeling was so _confusing_. I can't begin to explain everything that was running through my head, but I can give you the quick rundown—there was a lot of Carly, a _lot_ of Freddie, a lot of memories, and a lot of fear.

Fear's something that, if you noticed, I've never really been big on. That's why I was trying to think through circumstances in which all of this stuff could be worked out. And even when I hit a dead-end in my thoughts—even when one train of thoughts left Carly looking dead, and left Freddie acting like a jerk, I just jumped onto another one. That's how I occupied my time. Instead of playing cards and talking about school like Gibby and Shane were.

Like I said, there was no doubt in my mind that _somehow_ everything would turn out okay. So why wasn't I acting like Gibby and Shane? Why wasn't I able to just relax?

Boy, there's a big nagging question that keeps coming up a lot: 'Why?' I was getting sick of it, but there was no getting away from the stupid word. The 'why's kept coming on this journey whether I wanted them to or not.

But at least the Gummi ship was safe. It was powered by the gifts of our friends back in Traverse Town. I smiled at the thought that I even began to consider Mrs. Benson among them. She really did care, you know? She cared when Spencer had given me that beat-down outside. She cared when I had fainted and she kneeled right in front of me. And she cared so much that she apparently waited right over me to wake up. She probably wasn't too different in the real world, either. But I would never give her the chance to prove that. I already had a mother back home. And I had Carly. I think two mom's are enough for me, thank you very much. But I'll still probably see her in a different light when we get back.

The thought that I used the word 'when' and not the word 'if' only brightened my spirits more. And I sighed contently as I pulled my knees to my chest.

I let myself fall over onto my side—the floor was surprisingly comfortable and inviting—but I was only resting. I still had so much more to do—I couldn't sleep now. I just spent the rest of the smooth trip in thought as Shane and Gibby laughed and played along, their voices just soothing background music in my mind.

When the Gummi ship comes to a smooth stop, I hear Gibby and Shane groan in annoyance. Something about how they had a bet running on that game. Yeah, nice, guys—we're heading into the realm of darkness and you're gambling. And then I get to thinking…that probably would've been me if I hadn't gone through all the stuff I did on this journey. _I'd_ be the one betting and playing cards during a crisis. This thing…it's really changed me. And I normally don't like change, but I'm okay with this.

Don't get me wrong; I'm still the same old Sam Puckett. I'm just a little…wiser, I guess.

As we step out of the ship, I see that we're on this crystal platform. But it's not the only one. There are about 5 of them jutting out of the ground that lead to a floating stone area. I look down to see that underneath us there's water, but it's black. The water is literally pitch-black. There's no way to see what's under it, but then again I don't really want to find out.

"Hey! What's going on up there?" Gibby yells, pulling me out of my thoughts.

He's pointing to the stone platform. When I look up there, I can see two people staring off. One of them looks familiar, but I can't really place his face from this far away. But the other, I know without a doubt is Freddie. He's got this blade in his hand that looks like a wing. Have I ever mentioned that this place is super strange?

Suddenly, the guy I don't completely recognize jumps at Freddie with his fists raised high. And as I'm about to yell for Freddie to get out of the way, I realize _he's_ not the one I should be calling to. Because at that moment, he slashes with his blade, sending the other guy flying. "Whoa!" I yell.

"Freddie just slashed that guy in the face!" shouts Gibby while pointing.

I'm frozen stiff. In danger or not, Freddie wouldn't do that. He wouldn't have hurt someone that way. He might've defended himself, but not deliberately _tried_ to leave a mark. I mean, I know he used to fence and all, but that was all just sport and playing around. This was _real_.

Shane's looking around frantically until he finally speaks. "We gotta go help the guy!" he yells, and then starts jumping to the stone area.

I'm brought out of my trance again and nod, following with Gibby at my side.

We make it to the platform and I run to the guy. Aw man. A small pool of blood surrounds the dude's head. But as I get closer to take a look at him, he weakly manages to pull his head up. There's a gash over his face, but that mug was unmistakable. My eyes widen. "Jonah?"

His eyes squint. He must be close to passing out, but before he does, he's able to mutter out my name in question. Then, of course, his head hits the floor, but just his recognition of me and my voice—that tells me that it's really him. I'm not sure why he's here or what he's even doing here, but it's really Jonah.

And even though I hate the guy and what he did to me, I can't help but feel concerned for him. "Freddie, why…?" I begin, not even looking at him.

He slides a hand into his pocket, casually. The blood's still looming ominously on the blade he holds, and Freddie ignores my question. "About time you showed up," he said as if we'd caused him some inconvenience. "I mean, I knew you'd follow me. I just thought it'd be quicker than this."

I'm silent. I'm waiting for the dork to answer my stupid _question, already_.

But he doesn't. Instead he just goes on. "You're like a kid, you know?" he asks. "Just use reverse psychology on them and it works like a charm."

I know that's not why he wanted us to come here. I told you, I just felt it in the way he spoke. This wasn't the real answer. This wasn't the real Freddie talking. Right now, he was being used as a puppet by the darkness, and I knew that. So I didn't even address his insults. All I did was ask again, "Freddie, _why did you do that to Jonah_?" But this time, I turned to him when I said it.

The smirk he was wearing fell, and he gave me that glare that he seemed to reserve especially for me. "Valerie was right," he says for the second time today, shaking his head. "You don't have what it takes to save Carly. You worry too much about others and lose sight of your priorities. But that's just like you," Freddie scoffs. "Only the true keyblade wielder can open the door to Kingdom Hearts! And that's me."

So the thing he was holding was a keyblade.

…

Wait, _what_?

"What are you talking about?" I ask, taken aback. "I'm the one with the keyblade. I was the one to fight my whole way here with it! I was the one who got it on the island. And I was the one it returned to when Spencer showed me what would happen if anyone tried to take it from me. So, _I'm_ the true keyblade wielder. It chose _me_." I nod. I can definitely feel the tension boiling up inside me—anger rising within me. Who did he think he was? I was the one who had to go through all this stuff. All this struggle, and loss, and now he thinks _he's_ the hero. But the look on his face says he doesn't _think_ he's the hero, he _knows_ he is.

Freddie's smirk slowly returns and he laughs at my statement. "No, Sam," he says shaking his head. His tone is so patronizing! It makes me just want to knock him to the floor and start punching the heck out of his stupid face. "You were just the messenger. Bringing the keyblade to its rightful owner."

My face tightens into a glare, and I can't help but shout. "I don't think so, dork!"

Freddie grins and I see his eyebrow twitch in intrigue. "Yeah?" he asks while holding up his blade and getting into a stance. "Prove it," he spits the words at me.

Instantly, I run at him with a battle cry, swinging. It was a reckless move, but then again, I was a reckless kind of gal.

But it was the _wrong_ reckless move. Freddie ducks and swings a leg out, tripping me. He tries to come down on me with his keyblade but I quickly roll out of the way. My keyblade's more for smashing, but his is for cutting. If I had been hit…well, let's just say I'm lucky I moved.

He tries to slash me again, but I've just about regained my composure. And I'm able to block his hit by holding my keyblade in my hands horizontally. Good! That caught him off guard!

Freddie stumbles back and I instantly run towards him before he can balance himself and begin a barrage of slashes a la Spencer Shay.

He's hit, over and over and over again, unable to block one single slash. Freddie's at the edge of the platform now, and he tries to trip me again. I was able to evade it, but I still stumbled backward, and that threw me off my game.

Gibby and Shane call my name from the sidelines, but I yell at them to stay back—this is my fight and my fight alone.

In this time, Freddie tries to slash right into my chest, probably thinking I was distracting but I block him. Spencer's words echoed in my head. _"Well, we know you have blocking down. Now try attacking!" _My face is stern as I give a nod—here we go, Spencer—and I swing at Freddie.

He jumps _over_ my keyblade—not only to dodge _my_ attack but also to launch an attack of his own. But I quickly recover, and in a move that surprises him, I swing my keyblade and knock his legs out from underneath him. Freddie falls, just barely clinging to the high stone platform by his fingertips.

I feel my face go blank then. In that moment, I want to be unfeeling—so that I could do what I thought was right. I walk closer to the edge slowly—emotionlessly—and raise my foot, so that I can step on his fingers, causing him to fall.

But then I see his face. He's looking back and forth between the far-off pitch-black abyss of water and me. And it's at this time that I realize _nothing's _changed. He's still that frightened kid that I gave wedgies to, knocked down in hallways, and chased around the room. Granted, he's bigger now, and kind of acting like a jerk at the moment…but he's still Freddie.

I feel my face soften. This was _not_ the right thing to do. And if I had acted immediately—recklessly—like I normally do, I would've never seen that.

I slowly lower my foot back to the ground, and reach out a hand to my favorite tech nerd and punching bag that's ever existed.

Now, it's my turn to be shocked. Because as I'm bringing him up, he swings his legs and kicks me right in the stomach, sending me flying back and to the ground.

He lands on the platform on his feet, and with that all-too-familiar smirk, speaks. "I've picked up a few new tricks from this place, too."

My keyblade had slid out of my grasp when I had flown backwards, so as he's coming towards me, slowly, I know exactly what he's going for.

I want to get up, and just grab it before he does, but I'm too shocked to move. He actually knocked me back, and that thought terrifies me as I replay it in my mind. I know now for sure without a doubt that Freddie's not the one in control here—that the darkness has a tight hold over him.

I reach out my hand, so that this way, the keyblade will teleport back to me before he can get to it.

But that's when I realized—as his gaze stayed on mine, and he walked right, instead of left where my weapon had landed—that he _wasn't_ aiming for my keyblade. He was trying to—_crunch._

I tried not to cry out as Freddie stepped on my right hand. My face scrunched and I bit my lip to try to muddle through the pain.

Gibby and Shane gasp from the sidelines.

"Sam!" Gibby calls.

"Let her go!" Shane yells as they both try to run to me.

But Freddie puts up a hand and instantly, they're trapped inside this floating dark bubble.

I look to them, but I'm in too much pain. I can't do anything!

"You don't care about Carly," Freddie says darkly as he steps deeper into my hand.

I can't help but let out a moan as it feels like the stone is melding with my palm. And I pound the ground with my left fist, trying to let out some of the adrenaline that my body is producing because of my situation and pain.

"And you don't care about me," he says, sounding even angrier as he presses deeper still.

I want to yell to him that he's wrong—that he's wrong about everything, but I can't. All my energy is currently being used to stop myself from yelling. I'm not going to give him the satisfaction of letting him hear that he's causing me pain. Though he probably sees it clearer than anything written on my face. I can still hear Gibby and Shane's muffled shouting in the background as Freddie switches up into shouting himself.

"You don't care about anything!" he yells. "You just pretend like you do! Well, your fakeness isn't gonna help you anymore." He huffs out air like steam as he presses his foot deeper into my hand and shouts at the top of his lungs. "I'm saving Carly and you're not getting in my way!"

I heard a sickening crack at that moment, and a blood-curdling scream. It was only as I felt the tears on my cheeks that I even knew the scream had come from my own lips.

Freddie's eyes widened and he stumbled back as I quickly withdrew my arm to cradle my now broken hand.

Gibby and Shane shout my name louder than ever from their bubble-prison, and bang on its walls to no avail.

Freddie's regained composure by now and he flicks his wrist, making the cage with my only allies in it disappear. "Your journey's over now, Sam," he says quietly after a pause that had only been filled by the sound of my sobbing.

I wasn't even sure why it hurt that much. I'd broken bones before, and I'd never reacted this way. Sure I'd spout a few unintelligible words, but I would never cry, let alone sob. So what was different now? Was it because _Freddie_ did it to me? And did it hurt so much because he was one of my best friends…or was it because I was pretty sure I had been starting to—

"Here," he calls, slicing through my thoughts. "I think I found a weapon you might actually be able to handle." I look up as I see a wooden sword thrown on the ground in front of my face. My keyblade suddenly shimmers and appears in Freddie's empty hand.

I lost it…_How_? How could this _happen_?

"So long, Sam." He turns his back to me.

But I'm not giving up so easy. "This isn't the end, Freddie!" I yell out, pushing through all of my tears to make my voice sound strong—like it needs to be right now; like_ I_ need to be right now, even though it feels impossible.

He only turns his head back to me and his expression is blank. "Who said it had to be?"

And then, he disappears. And I'm left there at the center of the platform, with nothing but the whistling wind to keep me company.

Suddenly, Freddie's whispering voice sounds in my head; it's low, though—almost inaudible, but I can hear genuine emotion drip from every word.

_Sam…I'm so sorry…_

--

**AN: So, how was Chapter 11? There's really not much to say about this one. I know it's a bit shorter than the last few, but there really was no better place to end it. I know it was **_**definitely**_** upsetting, but I hoped you all enjoyed reading it regardless. Don't hate me for this chapter, please =/ Trust me—it will get better. Once again, thank you for all your past reviews and faves and watches. I really appreciate all of them, and remember that you're all the reasons why I'm keeping at this thing. So, yeah, hope you all enjoyed reading chapter 11, and I look forward to seeing your comments and opinions in your reviews. Until next time,**

**-Fictions**


	12. Chapter 12

Summary: When Carly, Sam, and Freddie buy a new video game from a shady shop, just how crazy will things get when they try to play it?

Disclaimer: If we've come this far and you _still_ don't know that I don't own iCarly and Kingdom Hearts, and that Dan Schneider and Tetsuya Nomaru (respectively) _do_, then Sam says you're too stupid to read this fic and you should turn back now. You should probably do what she says.

iFight For the Light: Chapter 12

Alone. That's what I _truly_ felt now more than ever.

One of my best friends was, as far as I could see, in some sort of comatose state, and the other just tried to _kill_ me. Needless to say he didn't succeed, but he did break my dominant hand.

Stupid, stupid, _stupid_, Freddie! Really, I came all the way out here to save him and Carly. First, he yells at me for not caring, and now that we're finally getting somewhere, he yells at me _for_ caring and getting in the way! What was _wrong_ with this boy?!

I must be crazy to still want to go on. I have no one. That mess of a dork took my only allies from me. Yet I still feel like continuing.

I sigh, but then remember those whispered words of Freddie's—his apology, and how sincere it sounded. I had to go on. Not only for Carly, but also for him. The real Freddie Benson was in there, and he needed me. And if the volume of his words were any indication, he needed me _now_. I swear, it sounded like he was fading in my mind—clinging to not life, but existence. I shook my head.

The spot of floor I had crumpled on had become my resting ground for the past hour and a half, or so. And no matter how desperately I wanted to move/walk/run, all I did was cry. I was disgusted with how pathetic I'd become. Really, what the heck was wrong with me? When the tears finally stopped, I just decided I'd better stay put as to not start the waterworks up again.

But then I heard footsteps, and felt a gaze on my back. A sigh. And then more footsteps, until Jonah walked past me. He was wearing this cloak (what was it with these people and cloaks?) with a regular t-shirt and pants underneath it.

"Where are you going?" I asked without really thinking. He turned back to me slightly and I kept going. "That's a pretty big gash. You probably lost a lot of blood. You shouldn't just be walkin' around."

"Why do you care?" he asked, perplexed as his eyebrows furrowed.

That was a very good question. But I just denied it. "I don't," I said, shaking my head.

He just kept his confused look about him and I sighed.

"Why were you fighting Freddie?" I asked, without meeting his gaze. For some reason, Freddie's name was doing weird things to me whenever I said or heard it. When I said it, I couldn't look at the person I was speaking to. And when I heard it, there was this flutter that took off inside of me. It's really hard to explain. Like, everything just goes into overdrive. It's that exhilarated feeling from before—yeah, that's it.

He shrugs. "I got caught."

"Caught?" I ask, my eyebrows furrowing.

"I was sneaking around the castle, and they found me and kicked me out."

Maybe it was the knock to the head that made him that way, but Jonah wasn't making any sense. I shook my head, "What are you even doing here, Jonah?"

"Well, I got this game from this shop and—"

"_After_ that," I rolled my eyes. I didn't want to be _incredibly_ mean but I'd already heard this story a few times through, and getting your hand broken by one of your best friends didn't really leave you in the best of moods. "Why did you end up here?"

Jonah shrugs again. "I didn't."

I raise an eyebrow and do my head-tilt thing. "What do you mean you didn't?"

"I _mean_," he said, beginning to catch an attitude of his own—which I shot him a warning look for. "I started off in a different world. But mine got destroyed."

"But then why didn't you end up in Traverse Town?" I asked, remembering Rodney's words from my first encounter with him. "That's where everyone goes when their world is destroyed."

He rolled his eyes. "I guess I missed my stop on the Holy Crap Your World Just Exploded express."

I shot him a more obvious warning look, squinting my eyes and baring my teeth this time.

Jonah put a hand to his head and muttered out an apology.

"So, why did you stay?" I asked, my gaze returning back to normal as I shook my head. "Why didn't you try to find some way to leave?"

He completely shocks me by saying, "Because I heard you'd be coming here."

I roll my eyes and groan. "_Jonah_."

"No, not for that," he waves a hand. "I just—" he breaks off and looks down, biting his lip and seemingly searching for the right words to say. "I know what I did to you was horrible. And I stayed here and waited for you so…I could be forgiven."

I glare at him.

"I didn't expect you to say yes right away!" he shrieks in defense. "But that's why I wanted to offer up my services to help you."

My glare shifts into a look of disbelief. "_Really_?" I ask in an all-too-Freddie tone. "So that's why you were just walking away?"

He just about cuts me off. "I was walking away because you looked like you were giving up, Sam." Jonah stares at his shoes as he inhales and exhales a deep breath. "You looked like you were done fighting." His face lifts so he can look me in the eye. But the moment his head goes up, my gaze takes his spot on the floor.

"No," I say quietly—uncharacteristically. "Never."

"So, what about you?" he asks, and my head flies up again. "What are you here for?"

"To fight for my friends." My answer slips out so fast that it's as if it's been embedded in my mind—it's preset. And then I really get to thinking about it and clarify more, now with only Freddie in my thoughts. "To fight for the light buried deep in the darkness."

Jonah doesn't ask any more of me. He's silent, and staring at me almost as if he understands.

But the silence, like always, becomes too much for me to bear, and I begin to walk towards the castle that's located just a bit higher than the stone area we're on now "Let's go."

"Okay." He nods. "But—" Jonah says, causing me to turn around. "—That's the wrong way. Follow me."

He leads me back down to the crystal platform we'd arrived on. "I don't see how this is getting us up _there_."

"Well, you see," he turns to look at me, pressing his fingers together as he tries to explain his actions. "The door up there is locked right now. And all you'll find is a giant welcome wagon of incredibly strong heartless."

"So," I begin with furrowed eyebrows, looking around rather clueless. "How do we open the door?"

Slowly, he grins. "Follow me," he says, and then jumps into the black water.

I'm staring at him in _horror_. How could you just jump into that stuff?

Jonah comes back to the surface and motions for me to follow him. "Come on in, the water's fine."

"Are you crazy?" I ask/yell back at him. "That water's completely murky! You can't see a thing in there!" I was known for doing some outrageous things, but this crossed the line. Brave I was, crazy I was not.

"It's clear from below," he yells back, but I just don't believe him. "There's nothing in here, trust me. Why would I lead you into a trap if I want you to forgive me at some point?"

I chew my lip in thought for a few seconds and then hesitantly roll my eyes and sigh. Taking a deep breath, I jump into the water, too. Jonah doesn't even wait for me to surface for air before he swims off. But he _is _right—the water is perfectly clear from underneath. This place had to be the weirdest area/world/etc. I've ever been in.

I gulped in more air and then took back to the water to swim after Jonah. We swam through this dark tunnel, and when we surfaced again, we were in this hallway-like area. Figures a place like this would have catacombs. Why didn't I see it coming?

Jonah jumps onto the platform that's in front of us with ease, and then offers me a hand in getting out.

I glare at him. He wasn't getting my forgiveness let alone my trust so easily. I gripped the side and pulled myself up, only struggling a little bit more than he had (because of my hand.) Once I'm onto the platform and standing straight again, I toss in a little raise of my eyebrows as if to say, "So there."

"Alright, navigator," I call to Jonah in sarcasm. "Which way?"

"This way," he says pointing as he begins to walk. "Trust me, this'll only take a minute."

Okay, maybe Jonah can't tell time, but I can. And I can definitely tell the difference between a minute and a half an hour.

"Great, we're lost!" I yell. "And I'd say 'let's ask for directions,' but," I made a motion with my hands to show him that there was no one else around. Fantastic, we could die here and no one would ever know. This day kept getting better and better.

"We're not lost," he retorts. "I've been sneaking through here to get food for as long as I've been here—I know my way around."

"Ahuh," I nod. "And I'm a three-headed rhinoceros named Kiki and I love grape jelly."

Jonah raises an eyebrow. "I thought you liked grape jelly."

"I _hate_ grape jelly," I say, glaring and cross my arms. Only to be painfully reminded that my right hand is broken. I hiss in pain.

He looks back at me in concern. "You should really put that thing in a sling."

I roll my eyes. "Yeah, because I always keep bandages with me." But then my eyes widen in realization. "Wait a minute!" I say as I shove my hand into my pocket and pull out the tent Rodney had given me. "Can you rip this?" I ask as I extend my left hand to Jonah.

After he raises his eyebrow and pauses, he asks, "why?"

I purse my lips. "Because I love the sound of fabric ripping." My hand flies out to biff him on the head with the tent. "So I can turn it into a sling, you knucklehead."

His eyebrow seems to rise further. "Why can't you do it?"

"Because ripping kind of requires two hands, and one of mine is currently occupied with being _broken_," I say completely and utterly annoyed.

Jonah gives an apologetic look as he snatches the tent from my hands. "Are you sure you want to rip this?"

"Why?" I ask. "Were _you_ planning on going camping any time soon?"

Rolling his eyes, he rips the red fabric. And we stop so that he can fit it as a sling around my neck and arm.

"Thanks," I nod.

"Don't mention it."

But I can't help but mention it because so far, he's been helping me and all I've done is dish out snide remark after snide remark to him. "Your face looks pretty bad."

"Well, gee, thanks."

"That's not what I—" I stop, sighing. "I have a potion with me. You can use it to heal up."

Jonah looks at me questioningly. "Why don't you use it?"

I give a lopsided frown. "The bottle says it's for skin-repair only." I shrug. "Doesn't heal bones."

Hesitantly, he sighs and nods. "Okay, toss it here."

So I do. And after he drinks it, he heals up, good as new.

"Why were you trying to fight Freddie unarmed anyway?"

Jonah shrugs. "I had no choice. Came in with no weapon."

I purse my lips. There's nothing I can do about tha—wait a minute. Principal Franklin's words run through my mind again. _"It's just something you may need in the future."_

My eyes widen again.

"Jonah!" I call excitedly. "Put your hand into my right pocket."

He gives me one of the weirdest looks I've ever seen.

"Oh, cut it out!" I yell. "There's something I think I'm supposed to give you in there, but I can't reach it myself. So just put your hand in my pocket and don't say a _word_, or I'll _kill_ you."

He quickly does so. The boy knows I'm not playing around. He pulls out the metal clawed glove that Ted had given me. "Whoa!" he calls in amazement and fits it onto his hand, clenching and unclenching his fist.

"It's good, huh?" I ask smirking with a raised eyebrow of my own.

"Psh, yeah!" he calls out ecstatic. "Thanks, Sam." Jonah looks to me and grins.

I roll my eyes. I hate when he grins. Always have after…well, you know. "Don't thank me. Thank Principal Franklin. He's the one who gave me the stupid thing."

"Principal Franklin?" he asks as he stops walking.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, long story," I say hurriedly. "More walking, less talking."

And we're back on the move. Shortly after our little shared moment of kindness, we find the switch that unlocks the door above. And we make our way back to the place where we'd met.

"Onward and upward, huh?" I ask breathlessly, admittedly a little intimidated.

"Yep," he nods. He emphasizes the word, making the 'p' pop, and then he's silent. We're both gazing at the looming castle, our expressions blank. But then he turns to me. "Sam, it's gonna be rough up there—"

I cut him off. I don't want the warning talk. That's the _last_ thing I need. "Jonah, I don't need you to tell me how dangerous it—"

Now _he_ cuts _me_ off. "I just want to you to know that I've got your back, okay?"

I'm silent. But then I speak, shaking my head. " I don't need you to fight my battles."

"You might for right now," he says nodding. "That little wooden sword Freddie gave you doesn't look like it's very good for defeating heartless."

I glare. The bonehead's right, and I grit my teeth to that fact. But eventually I sigh and cave. "Fine, you can protect me." Just so he's not getting any jollies out of it, though, I add, "but know that if I _did_ have a good weapon, _I'd_ be the one protecting _you_. You got that, hotshot?"

Jonah just smiles and scoffs.

And then we're off.

The boy was not kidding when he said that the journey would be rough. There were heartless I had never even _seen _before—flying ones, giant ones, ones that blew fire. It was completely insane. And I felt so pathetic that I had to hide behind my stupid ex-boyfriend for protection.

I have to admit, though, he was a pretty good fighter. With that clawed glove I gave him, he was slashing through heartless after heartless in seconds. This place must've really toughened him up while he was here. I mean, he lasted this long, and that was with_out_ a weapon. Now that he had one, he was seemingly unstoppable.

We were eventually able to run into the entry hall of the castle we'd been previously gazing at in dread, but we skidded to a stop as soon as we got indoors.

Roadblock.

Freddie didn't even turn around as he groaned in annoyance. He didn't have to—he knew who was standing behind him. Only one person would defy him with every step he took. And that was me. "_Give up, Sam_!" he shouted.

The bubble holding Gibby and Shane rested only a few feet to the side of him, and as he yelled my name, their heads snapped up to attention.

"No!" I boomed back. Freddie spun on his heel to face me and I continued. "Not without Carly. And not without you."

He glared and took a defiant step towards me. "You're not _getting_ Carly. And I don't want to leave!"

I sighed and shook my head, my tone becoming civil once more. "Freddie, you don't belong here."

"I do!" he shouted back immediately. "I do belong here. _This_ is my home now!"

"No it isn't!" I yelled. "You don't know what you're talking about. This isn't _you_, Freddie!"

He let out a breath that sounded more like a growl than anything else. His voice coated with anger, he took four more steps closer. "I'm telling you to _give up __**now**__, Sam_!"

"Or _what_?" I challenged, advancing on _him_ now.

"Or the darkness will destroy you," he spoke lowly as we began to circle each other.

"Yeah?" I asked rhetorically, nodding as I stopped in his original spot. "Then let the darkness take its best shot."

He bared his teeth in a look that before might've made my legs give out from under me. But this time, even though I had no keyblade, and I only had Jonah to fight beside me, it didn't affect me at all. If anything, it made me stand even taller.

"Look," I said raising my eyebrows. "You're wrong, Freddie, okay? The darkness may totally trash my body, that's true." I took a deep breath and righted my posture so that I stood completely straight and held my head high. "But it can never touch my heart. My heart will live as long as my friends do." I turned to glance quickly at Gibby and Shane. They were completely still in the dark bubble prison, listening to every word being exchanged.

Freddie scoffed and shook his head, arming himself with his dark keyblade. "Well, we'll see about that, won't we?"

"Yeah," I said in a neutral tone as I nodded my head once. "We definitely will." And then I raised my hand. The bubble prison shattered like a window hit with a baseball and immediately Gibby and Shane rushed to my sides, leaving Jonah standing directly behind me.

Freddie looked around in shock, and then shouted at me. "How did you do that?"

"Magic." I grinned at the memory that I had had a very similar reaction to Principal Franklin's first mystical display. But then I shook my head. "But don't worry about them. They're not the ones who are going to face you." I took another step forward. "I am."

Freddie shook his head, glaring at me again and then laughed. "How are you gonna fight with no weapon?"

"I don't need some sword to kick your sorry butt." I pursed my lips. "I've got my heart."

Freddie raised an eyebrow at me and smirked, holding in laughter. "You're gonna fight with your heart? Right, okay."

I glared and shrugged. "Or my fists—whatever works."

I looked to my sides to see Gibby glaring at me from the right and Shane rolling his eyes to the left.

I sighed. "The point is I've made a lot of friends throughout this journey," I said, my tone slipping back into civility. "And I've become a part of their hearts like they've become a part of mine. And if they just think of me now and then—if they keep me drawn on their walls of memory, and never erase me—then our hearts will be one. And knowing I'm not alone—that I have people out there who care about me," I shake my head. "That's the strongest feeling of all. So, I don't need some stupid weapon." I stand perfectly tall once more and yell with all my being. "My friends give me strength! _They_ are my power!"

My eyes widen, as my left hand suddenly feels heavier. And I smirk because I know exactly what's happened.

"But," I say as I raise my hand and examine my good ol' keyblade and shrug. "This sure helps, too."

Freddie's eyes have widened. He's no longer confident and he gulps as he fiddles with his hands, looking around for some other weakness of mine he could possibly pick at. Finally, he says, "But you're right-handed."

My smirk grows wider. "Guess you don't know me as well as you thought ya did, Fredward," I say laughing and shaking my head. "Yeah, I'm right handed," I nod and jump at him swinging.

He's just barely able to block his face, and his eyes are still wide with fear.

The swing left me with my back to him, but I turn my head so that I can keep an eye on the nerd. "But I hit way harder with my left."

I jump back and give him a nod of my head as if to say 'come and get me.' He definitely takes the bait and runs at me with a growl and swings.

I block him with ease and flash a smile. "Yeah, you broke the wrong hand, dork." With a bit of effort, which causes me to groan, I'm able to push him away. He stumbles back, and that's good, but boy would this be a whole ton easier if I had use of both hands. I'm just way thankful right now that Spencer taught me to fight one-handed.

I run at him and slash, but he jumps out of the way and to the side.

He surprises me when he slashes right for my middle and lands his hit.

Freddie grins as he sees my blood trickle onto the floor. But Gibby quickly shouts from the sidelines and heals me up. Now it's my turn to grin. "Not so self-assure now, are you, darkness boy?"

His face heats up and he almost roars as he swings for my head.

I duck down and as soon as his keyblade passes the vicinity of my body, I leap backwards, landing on my feet. "Is that _really_ the best you can do, Freddork?" I shout.

He runs at me, but before he can swing, I duck and land a hit to his left side. Freddie stumbles, but before he falls, I land a hit to his _right_ side, all the while advancing on him and forcing him to walk backward. Finally, I land a blow right into his chest and he falls back, hitting his head on the side of the stone fountain behind him. He's not bleeding, but the boy's surely out cold.

Gibby, Shane and Jonah rush to my side. "Serves him right, the stupid nub," I say, my face nothing but serious. Taking a deep breath, I turn to my allies. "So, where's my _non_-dweebish best friend?"

The shirtless nerd (I use my nicknames with care, okay?) answers immediately. "Freddie handed her over to Valerie when we first got here."

Shane nods. "She said something about taking her to the top. I'm guessing they meant the top of the castle."

"Right," Gibby continues again. "And then she told Freddie to wait here for you."

"Yeah, well," I nudged Freddie's unconscious body lightly with my foot. "Looks like he's gonna be doing nothing _but_ waiting for a while."

Jonah chimes in now. "There's a door that will lead us to the upper parts of the castle up there." He nods to the top of the platform that resides behind the fountain, with ramps leading up to it on each side.

He and Shane go to scope out the doorway while Gibby and I stay by Freddie. I'm just staring down at him blankly. I wish I could apologize. And truthfully, if Freddie were his old self, I _would_. But this _isn't_ my old dork. So I'm not the least bit sorry for what I've done.

A groan comes from the hollowed out archway where the door we need to get through resides.

"What?" Gibby calls up to Shane and Jonah.

"I can't _believe_ this," Shane comes stomping out in annoyance.

Gibby raises an eyebrow. "What's the matter?"

Jonah sighs exasperatedly and joins Shane outside the archway. "The door's locked."

I roll my eyes.

It figures.

It's always one obstacle after another.

--

**AN: And there we have Chapter 12! –Presses cheer button on Sam's remote.- Now, while Sam's hand isn't healed and can't be healed by any magic or potion, she's still able to function pretty well. And now, with a little help from Jonah, the gang is all-together again. Well, mostly. And Sam was able to give Freddie that beat-down he deserved so bad. This chapter was much more lighthearted and very fun to write. But despite all the laughs that were had, I hope the battle scene between Sam and Freddie came off well (Haha, I'm **_**always**_** concerned about the battle scenes—it's because I feel I can't write action.) I'll stop whining now XD Hope you guys enjoyed! And I look forward to seeing what you all thought of this chapter! ^^**

**-Fictions**


	13. Chapter 13

Summary: When Carly, Sam, and Freddie buy a new video game from a shady shop, just how crazy will things get when they try to play it?

Disclaimer: I wish I could say that I own these fandoms, but I do not! And I am running out of creative ways of saying so! D= Dan Schneider owns iCarly and Tetsuya Nomaru owns Kingdom Hearts.

iFight For the Light: Chapter 13

"So, the door's locked, huh?" I asked, lifting my head up so I could see Shane and Jonah. "Too bad I don't have a giant key. That can unlock things." I then gasped in mock surprise and flashed a fake smile. "Oh, wait!"

Jonah shook his head. "It's no use. It's not that kind of door."

"Well," I began, examining my keyblade. "That's not all this puppy's good for, ya know? It's also pretty good at smashing things."

"No, you see," Jonah crossed his arms. "There's this glass design on that door. And that must've been what _made _it a door. All that's there right now is the empty frame of the design. Someone," he said, glaring at Freddie. "Must've shattered it and moved all the pieces somewhere."

I shrugged. "I still say we try smashing it."

My ever-annoying ex-boyfriend groaned and shook his head. "No, it's no use. Without the glass, that thing's just as good as a solid wall. There's no getting through."

I sighed and rolled my eyes. It was just like the entry to Principal Franklin's swamp. Although, this time, the solution for the problem wasn't quite so simple. "Alright, guys, look around," I commanded. "Check to see if there are any other open doors."

The search didn't last long. A few seconds, maybe a minute later, Shane called us over to a doorway he'd found. "It isn't much," he mumbled. "But maybe it'll get us somewhere."

I stepped inside and felt my face tense into a glare. It was a library. "Books," I hissed. "Of course, in the base of ultimate darkness, there'd be books. There's always books in evil places." I rolled my eyes, still very unhappy.

"Hey," Gibby calls. "There's a red book by your foot, Sam."

I look down. "Oh," I nod. "So there is."

After I don't move, Shane speaks. "Maybe you should put it away…?" he asks with a raised eyebrow.

I groan. "Oh, fine. 'Cause I don't do enough as it is already." I reach down to pick up the book and look for its appropriate place. Finding a group of red books with a gap between them, I place the one from my hand down. "There we go." And that's when the wall slides backward with a low rumble and then shifts out of the way.

You know what I said before? Strike it. Because this wasn't a library. It was a _giant_ library. And I just about growled as I stepped into the center of the room.

Aside from the walls and walls of books, the place was actually pretty nice looking, and I nodded as I appraised it. The window scaled from the floor to the ceiling but had this Victorian-like box pattern across the panes. And there was a winding staircase (which was only one flight high, but _still_.) So, overall, this seemed like a nice place to be. But we couldn't stop now. We couldn't even _rest_ now. We needed to find the pieces to that door pronto so that I could get Carly back as quickly as possible.

My eyes scanned the floor. "Uch," I scowled. "There are books all over the place."

"Well, it's kind of a library, Sam." Jonah rolled his eyes.

I glared. "No. I mean there are books not in _shelves_, where they're _supposed to be_. I mean, seriously, who leaves a library this way? I don't even go in libraries and even I know this is messed up."

"Well, maybe it's a clue," Shane shrugged.

"Yeah," Gibby nodded. "Maybe something happens when we put all the books back in the right place. I mean, look at what happened when you put that red book back there just now."

"But how do we know what's going to happen is a _good_ thing?" I ask, cringing.

"We don't," Jonah answers. "But we don't really have much of a choice right now, do we?"

I roll my eyes. He's right. "Fine," I say stomping my way ahead of the group and then turn back around to face them. "Let's all search around for books. But if this turns out bad and we die, or explode, or something, you all know I'll be kicking your butts in the afterlife. And I give Chuck Norris a run for his money with my kicks." I raise my eyebrows threateningly and everyone scatters immediately.

As we're all searching, Gibby shouts, "I found a green one back here!"

Jonah calls back to him before I can. "Well, try to find the place where it belongs—see what happens."

"'Kay!"

I keep an ear out to hear the shifting of walls, but I don't. "Hey, Gibster, what gives?" I ask, now looking in his direction with my only working hand on my left hip.

"I dunno," he shrugs. "I can't find an opening for it."

Jonah walks over. "Well, let's just keep going. At least until we've found and put away three books. Three's the lucky number, ya know?"

Gibby groans. "Why does everyone keep _saying_ that?" he rolls his eyes. "Three is _not _the lucky number."

Jonah looks at him as if he's crazy, with furrowed eyebrows. "I'm pretty sure it is," he says, nodding.

"_No_ it _isn't_. That's _seven_."

"Oh, so _seven's_ the lucky number?" he asks with disbelief.

"Yeah!"

"Well, there's no way I'm staying 'til we try out seven books," Jonah scoffs. "Three is fine, but the hat stops there."

Gibby brings his palms to his face in exasperation. "It's the _buck_ that stops."

Jonah laughs, shaking his head. "Well, that makes no sense."

"You know what else doesn't make any sense?" I ask.

"What?"

Putting my left hand on my hip, I give my answer. "The idea that I'd ever forgive you when all you're doing is standing here wasting our time." I raise my eyebrows and spin on my heel to walk away. We couldn't just waste time joking around. As much as I love a laugh now and then, we had to remember what we were supposed to be doing here and not stray from our task. A little playful sniping at each other here and there is fine, but to actually stop and disrupt everything just for a few chuckles—nah-uh, I don't think so.

As I'm walking away, not really sure of exactly where I'm walking _to_—I wanted my insult to be flawless and sharp, and you can't have that without an eyebrow-raise and a walk-away, even if there's nowhere to go—Shane calls through the now-lingering silence. "Speaking of not wasting time," he begins, causing me and everyone else to turn around. "Would you guys mind helping me with that?"

He's on the second floor of the library and I turn to Gibby and Jonah. "I'll get it." After I race to him, I see Shane, tall as he is, trying to stretch himself so he can reach the top of a bookcase. I raised an eyebrow and cleared my throat.

Shane turned around quickly. "Oh, Sam," who else would it have been—a heartless? The way he said my name in relief sounded weird in my ears. If people spun around in the real world to see me, they usually said the same thing, but with much more fear in their voices. Again, I was reminded of how strange it felt to be the hero instead of the bully. "There's a book on the top of this shelf—" I crane my neck so I see the tip of a yellow volume of text sticking out from the top of the bookcase. "—But I can't reach it. Can you help me?"

I roll my eyes. "Shane, you're the tallest one here, and you think I can help you reach something?"

Shane's eyes turn saddened, and he gives me a pleading look.

I can't turn my back on the kid if I wanted to because those books are the only hope we have for getting any higher in this castle. So I sigh and look around. "There's a table pretty close—can't you just pull that over and use that to stand on?"

Shane purses his lips and shakes his head, clapping his hands to his sides. "It's bolted to the floor. That thing's not moving anywhere."

I sigh and let my eyes dart around a bit more before speaking again. "Kneel," I say.

Shane's eyebrows furrow in confusion and he blinks. "_What_?"

"Kneel," I repeat, my eyes widening with seriousness.

"O…kay," he says slowly and drops to his knees.

"Alright, now, if you drop me, you're dead."

"_Drop_ you?" Shane repeats in confusion. "Wait, Sam, what do you--?"

But before he can finish asking, I'm standing on his shoulders. I put my arm out to try to balance myself and then sweep it across the top of the bookcase, knocking the yellow book straight off.

"What's going on over—" Bang. "OOF!"

I looked down to see Jonah, his face scrunched in pain with his hand up to his head, while the apparent assault weapon (a.k.a. the book) rested at his feet. Believe me when I say I could not help but laugh. "Boy do I love karma," I said as I jumped off Shane's back.

"Wasn't the 'Wedgie Bounce' _enough_?" Jonah asks as he keeps rubbing his forehead.

"Hmm," my gaze wanders to the ceiling as if I'm thinking, but then it's automatically right back to him. "No." I beam. As Shane bends down to pick up the fallen book, I turn to walk away, intending to search the second floor of the library for any more texts.

"Yikes," I heard Shane say. "What did you do?"

"I…tried to kiss Carly while Sam and I were going out," Jonah answers hesitantly.

All of a sudden, there's another banging sound and Jonah yells in pain.

"Oops," Shane replies in false sincerity. "My hand twitched."

I couldn't help but smile at that, and my smile only became more pronounced when I distinctly heard what sounded like Gibby's muffled laughter from not-too-far away.

After searching for a while, we couldn't find sign of a spot for the other books_ or_ a fourth text. And I, in all my impatience, gathered everyone to a spot on the first floor to announce that we should give up searching the library and just look for some other room to search.

But just as I was talking, Jonah walked right past me and pulled out an aquamarine book from a group of lime green ones. "You just have to have good eyes," he says, smiling friendly.

I sneer at him. Why does he have to prove me wrong? Why does he have to be nice and helpful? Couldn't he just be a jerk and let me hate him? Turning around, I grimaced. I was being forced to do a lot of things I didn't want to on this journey—working with someone I desperately wanted to hate was only one of those things. I was also being forced to hate and hurt someone I didn't want to. My frown ran deeper. I didn't want to fight Freddie, and I certainly didn't hate him. Unbelievable, right? The nerd broke my hand, he made me bleed, he threatened me, and yet, I still didn't hate him. I should. It was completely irrational for me not to. But this feeling…well, a lot of people said it _was_ irrational. I couldn't think the exact word yet, because my mind just wasn't able to process it. I don't blame it, though. It is pretty far-fetched. It's like, maybe I don't actually feel that way, you know? Maybe it's just the heat of the moment. But if I _do _actually feel the way I think I do—what _then_?

I see Gibby run past me, grinning. He must've found a spot for the green book he'd picked up. But I'm too lost in though to really say anything to him—to like, commend his valiant efforts or whatever.

The sound of shifting walls breaks my concentration, and I turn around to see Jonah with a grin on his face. "Now we're gettin' somewhere."

"Whoopee," I say unenthusiastically, waving my finger around in the air. "More space to check."

"It's not so bad," Shane shrugs. "In fact, I think I remember there being a space for the yellow book I found at the entrance to the library. Hold on," he extends his index finger to us. "I'll be right back."

He's gone for a few seconds and we hear the rumble of a wall sliding. "Alright! Another passage opened!"

I sigh. "Yay." My eyes roll without me even wanting them to.

"I think it _is_ actually a 'yay' moment, Sam," he says as he comes back around the corner another yellow book in hand. "I know _exactly_ where this one goes." Pointing a finger up the stairs, he beams. "Come on."

In the center bookcase lays a gap between a set of yellow texts, and Shane bends down carefully to place his book inside. It fits perfectly.

"And here we go," he grins as the wall begins to slide out.

But all it does is reveal another shelf of books. I fight off the strong urge I had to scream in frustration, and my eye twitches from the effort. I breathe heavily as I reach down and take out the mismatched green book from the stack of purple ones. After I turn back to my group, in as calm a voice as I can muster, I say, "This is just _cruel_."

You may be wondering why this library is causing me to react this way, since when Freddie bet me to read that book of his, I kind of fell in love with novels. But these weren't those kinds of books. These were those stereotypical do-nothing-but-bore-you-to-death books. And I hate those. There wasn't a single good book in this library, so my overwhelming hate for everything in this place was sort of…er…well, overwhelming.

Finally, I find a row of green books with a gap in it. Sighing in relief, I place the book in the space and wait for the wall to shift.

…

But it doesn't. I take the book out and place it in again.

Still nothing.

I glare and bare my teeth, pulling the book out and violently shoving it in again.

The cycle continues.

But that was it—that was the final straw. I begin to shove at the book continuously, over and over again. "Stupid door open!" I shout, not even worrying about scaring anyone anymore. I'm practically growling and snarling.

"Sam! Stop!" Gibby yells.

I pull back and he grabs the book from my hands.

Calmly, he pushes the green books with red markings on their spine over so that my book—which has yellow markings on its—can be with the rest of its kind.

The wall swings open like a door and I see that Jonah, Shane, and Gibby are all glaring at me.

"What?" I asked, glaring in return and put my left hand on my hip. "Books make me angry!"

Shaking their heads, they all walk into the new passage as I keep my eyes on them in a scrutinizing gaze.

Inside the nook of a passage lies a golden desk. And resting upon that golden desk is a purple text.

Jonah picks it up and grins from ear to ear. "Make you a bet this goes with those other purple books upstairs," he says as he treats the book as a lifting-weight.

I quickly snatch it from him, putting on my most mocking smile. "Make you a bet anyone could've figured that out, genius."

Walking back upstairs, with the cavalry following not-too-far behind me, I place the purple book in its rightful spot and wait for some sort of reward to come. The wall opens just as the last one had—as a door—and behind it was an _actual_ door. This had to have been the one we were looking for!

An ecstatic smile stretches across my face as I jiggle the handle. But I soon discover that the door is locked. My entire being fills with rage and I begin to shout a string of profanities that sound foreign to anyone that's not me or my mom—I'd picked them up from her on days where she was particularly angry at our cat.

After repeatedly shouting my name consecutively louder and louder, Shane finally gets my attention. When I turn to him, he picks up a gold book from the table that's right next to him. Jonah and I walk over to him, and Shane places it on the last shelf available. The shelf automatically slides away to reveal a giant red button on the wall, which Shane presses.

The same victory tone from when we'd opened the doorway to Principal Franklin's swamp sounds, and once again we all look around bewilderedly. "What the ham was that?" I ask.

I hear a creak and then Gibby shouts to us. "Guys! The door over here just opened!"

Jonah looks to me, smiling. "I'm guessing _that's_ what that sounds was."

I turn to him with raised eyebrows. "Gee, you always this stupid or is today a special day?"

Jonah sighs as I walk away, but I just ignore it. I deserve some kind of medal as it is for sitting through all this stuff. I don't have to be any nicer than I'm already being. It just _might_ kill me.

Walking through the doorway, we enter a room with a tram.

Everyone looks cautiously to me as if asking what we should do. Yeah, like I know the answer any better than you guys do.

Shrugging, I hop onto the tram. "Come on—the only ways to go are up or backwards."

With a sigh, Shane's the first one to join me, and eventually Gibby and Jonah follow suit.

Shane sits in the middle of the tram's floor with Gibby just next to him. Jonah and I are standing opposite each other, divided by the line made up by our sitting friends. Smoothly, I flip a switch and we begin to move.

Slowly, we rise upward, and then we stay level as we navigate through a tunnel, which leads outside. It's now that I notice just how high we really are.

Gibby's on all fours, and he looks over the side of the tram as he gulps. He's gripping onto the side so hard that his knuckles are white. In a hoarse voice, he asks, "Did I ever tell you guys that I'm afraid of heights…?"

Wow, the poor shirtless dweeb's actually green. But suddenly I grin as an idea floods my mind. "Oh, dude!" I shout as I begin wiggling my body back and forth, causing the tram to shake.

Shane turns back to me, looking more afraid than he ever has before. "Sam!" he shouts. "What are you doing?! Have you gone completely crazy?!"

"What?!" I call in defense. "I wanna see if he'll throw up on any of the heartless down there!"

Groaning he turns back around and I go back to my shaking. We continue the rest of the way up to the lift stop with Gibby whimpering in fear. It's not really my choice of elevator music—I'd rather the whimpering of someone who _deserves_ to be scared stiff, but eh, it'll do.

Once we step off the tram, we look around to observe our new surroundings. The only thing there is to do is press a switch, so that's what we do. I think we were all expecting the same thing—some big dramatic reveal of the glass design pieces or something of the sort. But that's _not_ what happens. In fact, _nothing_ happens.

Putting out my left hand as if to say, 'wait,' I ask, "Okay, so whaaat did that do?" in annoyance.

Gibby shakes his head. "I don't think it did anything…"

I can't help but scream in outrage. "Fudgebuckets!!!"

The trip back to the library isn't quite as exciting. I'm no longer in the mood to pull any of my usual antics, so we spend the rest of the ride down in what my cohorts would deem "peaceful silence."

I'm about to stomp down the stairs back to the first level of the library as Shane calls to us. "Uh, guys?" he asks and we all turn. "Didn't anyone bother to check this door?" He points to the door that should've been obvious to us before. I fight back the urge to blush in embarrassment, biting down on my cheeks as we walk over and push through the entryway. We're back in the entry hall of the castle, although much higher—just above the chandelier, so we're in the dark.

The whispered voice from the island returns to my mind and speaks cryptically. "To find what you might, all the candles must you light. Light only some and you will see, nothing that you wish to be. On this floor, you will find four, and two of those lie on either side of the door."

My head snapped up. "Guys! There are four candles on this floor, and we have to keep them all lit to get the glass shards. There are two by the door and Gibby and I can handle those right away."

Jonah shook his head. "How do you know this stuff?"

"No time for questions, wedgie boy—you go to the left and try to find the candle that's out that way. Shane—"

"I'll go to the right and find the one that's in that direction," he states, cutting me off. Shane then salutes and walks off.

A smile spreads across my face. There's that team telepathy thing again. "Once you find them, stay there and wait for us to run by. We'll light those after we get the ones by the door!" I call.

Running our hands across the dark wall, Gibby and I find our target candles.

"Ready?" I ask him.

"Yeah," the shirtless wonder says in a determined voice.

"Okay," I nod. "Now!"

We quickly shout our fire spells in unison, and then I take off into a run for Shane, listening carefully to hear that Gibby's running, too.

I hadn't realized it was such a long way across to the next candle. I should've noticed, considering that the room was so wide from the lower level, but the thought really hadn't crossed my mind.

Looking back, briefly, I see that the candles we had lit are quickly dying out, and I call back in a panic. "Gibby, hurry!"

"I'm going!" he shouts.

And finally I make it to Shane, our candles just about to extinguish as I yell my spell at the third. At about the same moment, I hear Gibby shout his own fire spell from across the room.

Jonah yelps. "Watch it! You almost set _me_ on fire!"

Before I can say anything, I hear Gibby's winded voice call, "It was a win-win situation—either I'd hit you or the candle."

I just about doubled over with laughter. Sure, Jonah was being nice and helping us now, but getting back at him felt good. After all, he _did_ deserve it. And if he _really_ wanted to be forgiven, he'd stick with us 'til the end.

When I lifted my head again, I saw that at the top of the chandelier rested a glass shard. Grinning, I jumped to it.

Shane yelled nervously. "Sam! What are you doing?"

I gripped the shard and held it to the gang, the bright light from the chandelier shining beneath me. "Retrieving our reward." My grin stayed comfortably in place.

Jonah's eyes went wide with triumph as he walked to the ledge. "We did it," he whispered just loud enough for us to hear.

Gibby also ran to the ledge to look. "Whoa! Look, Sam! There's platforms leading the whole way down!" he shouted.

Shane nodded. "And each platform looks like it has a shard on it, too."

I slipped the shard into my pocket. "Well, you guys are gonna have to get those," I said as I jumped from the top of the chandelier to the next closest platform, putting my only working hand out to help break my fall. "I'm kinda handicapped at the moment."

Eventually, we all got back to the ground, each of us with a shard in hand.

But while the others ran into the archway with excitement, I stayed outside, raising an eyebrow in confusion and suspicion. _Someone_ was missing. "Hey, we're missing a dork out here!" I shouted to the guys.

It was Jonah who answered. He sighed. "Well, we can't stop now." After a pause, he added. "Don't worry, Sam. Wherever he is, we'll catch up to him."

"Psh, worry?" I called back waving a hand. "Who's worried?" I asked in denial as I walked into the archway. "Now put your stupid pieces of glass back where they belong."

With a deep breath, Jonah placed his—the bottom piece—in first.

Shane and Gibby reached forward simultaneously to place theirs in, side-by-side.

Finally, I placed the last shard on top. The glass design glowed brightly, like a stain glass window with the sun shining through it. Ironic, I decided, since we were supposedly in the lair of ultimate darkness.

Still, I couldn't not smile—we were finally able to advance. As the door rose into the ceiling, I beamed. "Yes!" I shouted. "I—"

But my words were cut off as the echo of the empty castle was soon filled with the ringing bells of Traverse Town. My breath grew shallow, and my knees gave out on me as I felt myself mouth, "Oh, not again."

Gibby, Shane, and Jonah grabbed me as I came fully crashing to the floor, darkness clouding all my senses.

This vision began similarly to the last one. The area I was viewing was dark and eerie, the sound of echoed hurried footsteps and heavy breathing was all I heard.

Soon, Freddie rounded a corner and stopped in front of a hooded figure—_the_ hooded figure from the island; Nevel.

If I could move at all right now, I would be scowling, and I prepared myself for the next stupid decision Freddie was inevitably going to make.

"I don't like this!" Freddie shouted angrily. "I don't like what it's doing to me!"

"Why, whatever do you mean?" Nevel asked in his sickeningly nasal tone.

"I only wanted to save Carly," Freddie answers lowly, dropping his head and pausing. "I never wanted to hurt Sam. This thing is changing me." His head flew up again and he bared his teeth. "Take it back!"

Nevel shook his head. "It's _only_ because you're fighting the darkness, Freddie."

Freddie's eyes widened and he tilted his head, his breathing calming only a little bit. "What?"

A sigh came from the hooded figure and Nevel's voice picked up a tone of exasperation. "You're fighting—not accepting it," he said and I could almost hear him purse his lips, giving Freddie that annoying disapproving once-over he often gave us all as a group. "So, it's acting out."

Freddie's eyebrows furrow and he moves his head so that only half his face is visible. Always stealing things from me, that boy—my defiant attitude, my movements. I wish I could roll my eyes. I swear the urge is unbearable. "What are you saying?" he asks slowly.

"What I'm _saying_ is you need to accept the darkness completely." Nevel adjusts his stance to stand tall, making himself appear higher than Freddie in stature. "Let it _be you_—let _yourself_ be _it_."

Freddie exhales deeply looking around. "I don't need it anymore—Carly's safe. Can't you just take it away?" he asks shaking his head.

"No," answers Nevel with finality in his tone. "This is the only way to completely balance yourself—there's no going back."

Freddie visibly gulps and he looks around, tapping his foot and fiddling with his hands. He's nervous and unsure, and I can see it. I just want to grab him and shake him back to his own senses. Right now, it seems like genuine Freddie's shining through, and I don't want to lose him.

"You don't have to," the figure shrugs. "Of course that would mean you'd probably just go on hurting the people you care about, though—the people you love."

Freddie's head snaps up immediately. And even though I'm not there, physically, I can almost feel my cheeks burning. But he was probably thinking of Carly when Nevel mentioned "love." It's obvious Freddie cares—or the _real_ Freddie cares—about me; he just said he never wanted to hurt me. But he'll probably never feel like I--…. he'll probably never move on from Carly. No matter how many times I tell him to. "How do I do that?" he asks.

That urge to shake him? Yeah, it's like a million times stronger now.

"Simple," Nevel replies, and I can hear the smirk in his voice. "Just open yourself to it. Let your heart—your being become darkness itself."

Freddie scowls. "I can't believe I'm listening to _you_," he says as his body begins to glow that sickly green again.

The scene ahead of me fades to black as Freddie's whispered voice echoes through my mind once more.

_I'm doing this all for you…Sam…_

A scream. _His_ scream.

My eyes snap open when the water Gibby conjures hits my face, and I jolt into a sitting position. My breathing is heavy from not only the cold, but the sense of urgency my vision left me with.

Gibby, Shane, and Jonah are all kneeling by my side, all of their faces painted in concern.

"We have to get where Freddie is. Now."

--

**AN: Whoa! There we go, Chapter 13! Longest one yet! I know it was a slower chapter, but it was necessary for the plot. Plus, I thought the story could use some more funny and light-hearted times—they may be on a super serious mission, but they're still kids. And in anyone's life, not everything can be all frowns and stuff ;D I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and I'm sorry it took longer to get it out than I anticipated. Thank you all, again, for your reviews and support. I appreciate every single last one of them! ^^ Also, for those who are wondering, I've got around 5-7 chapters left to write, so hang in there! Until next time!**

**-Fictions**


	14. Chapter 14

Summary: When Carly, Sam, and Freddie buy a new video game from a shady shop, just how crazy will things get when they try to play it?

Disclaimer: All I own's this story and these bon-bons I'm eating. Dan Schneider owns iCarly and Tetsuya Nomaru owns Kingdom Hearts. So leave me alone, copyright people! …These are pretty good bon-bons, though…

iFight For the Light: Chapter 14

Tiring. That's what this whole thing was. Oh yeah, and unbelievable. Because while it was important that I reach the top of the castle, where Freddie _and_ Carly both probably were, we were seemingly getting nowhere.

We had to take lift after lift, and fight heartless after heartless in a seemingly endless cycle. And while the castle's exterior and ledges were beautiful, it took all my power to fight off the urge to throw myself off said ledges—to just jump away from it all; away from the heartless and the lifts; away from the whole tedious process all-together.

The trek was getting really annoying and tensions began to run high. I had no clue that the castle was _this _tall, and I'd be willing to bet all the ham I could ever eat that the other guys were in the same boat as me. Everyone's moods had plummeted, and we were practically all at each other's throats by the time we found the giant lift that must've looked like the embodiment of hope to our eyes.

As we all ran aboard as fast as we could, we directed our gazes to the sky as the tram began to rise. The top of the castle was relatively close now, and we all breathed a sigh of relief. That is, until what looked like dragons swooped down and began attacking us—kicking and scratching at our bodies with their talons.

"Dragons?!" I yelled in astonishment over the screeching creatures, slashing at them with the best of my abilities.

"No! They're heartless!" Jonah called back as he ducked a swipe from the supposed heartless in front of him. "Wyverns, to be specific!"

"Oh, great!" I shouted in sarcasm. "New ones!"

"Where do these things keep _coming _from?!" Gibby bellowed, probably instinctually as he zapped the wyvern in front of him with electricity.

"Uh, hello?!" I called in return. "Base of ultimate darkness? Ring any bells?"

Gibby didn't respond, and Shane hadn't said a word as he struggled to fight for himself as well as protect everyone else at the same time.

The only thing we'd accomplished by the time the lift stopped was drawing more heartless to us. There were about six or seven hovering over our whole group, and as soon as we were able, we jumped off the tram and ran into the nearest open door, closing it and locking it to the best of our abilities behind us.

Panting, we gripped the walls around us for support, and with shallow breaths, Gibby called out a cure spell that healed the whole group.

I grimaced at my right hand that hanged limply in the makeshift sling. "Still broken," I mumbled.

Gibby tossed a lop-sided frown in my direction. "I'm sorry, Sam. I can't understand why I'm not able to heal you." He shrugged. "Maybe I'm just not as powerful as Principal Franklin said I was," he said as his sad face became full-blown.

My eyebrows furrowed in sadness. Before Gibby looked back my way, I had a cool and collected nonchalant, neutral expression on my face. "Hey, it's cool," I said shrugging. "Everything happens for a reason."

My eyes widened and my cheeks glowed a bit as I realized that I had echoed Freddie's words from when we'd woken up on the island. My eyebrows knit together once again, but quickly went back to normal when I took notice of everyone staring at me.

Clearing my throat awkwardly, I spoke. "Right, well…" I said, pausing. "Let's look around to see where we have to go." As I spun around, my shoulders dropped, and I sighed in exasperation.

Ahead of us lay a long corridor. You didn't have to be a video game expert to know that a long, empty hallway was a bad omen.

I heard a gulp from behind me, but when I turned around all the guys were standing straight and still. The gulper must've regained composure. "Well," I began, throwing my left arm out to the waiting corridor. "Come on, you cowardly nerds. Let's show this hallway who's boss."

The only one to seemingly not take my quip seriously was Jonah, who rolled his eyes as he walked to my side. But then again, he'd probably navigated these halls more than once in the past so there were no surprises waiting for him.

As we walked, almost huddled, at a normal speed that, for some reason seemed to feel like trudging our way through thigh-high mud, I was surprised that no one—especially Gibby—actually cried out in fear. No. Seriously. I half-expected the little dweeb to start moaning, "I do believe in spooks, I do, I do, I do," or something to that accord, because this whole situation felt like a scene from some movie. It felt far too cinematic to be real, and yet, it was.

Once we had reached the end of the long corridor, we peaked around the corner of the wall that led into the next large room cautiously.

In the huge black room—that was only illuminated by the single window located close to the ceiling—stood Freddie and Valerie engaged in conversation. Well, a one-sided conversation because it seemed Valerie was doing all the talking as one might expect.

Freddie stood, and the obnoxious girl sat on what _looked _like a bench of some sort. But when she giggled and swung her legs whimsically, I realized what she was _really_ sitting on—it was what looked to be a glass coffin. And resting inside it was my best friend Carly.

That was it. Screw stealth. I bared my teeth as a fire roared inside of me and caused me to stomp into the room, screaming. "You ugly, no-good, rotten, snot-mouthed _witch_! Let Carly out of there or I will personally knock you off of every inch of this castle!"

Freddie smirked maliciously at me while Valerie glared in disgust, both giving me a complete once-over. "Um, how about 'no'?" she rolled her eyes.

My face tensed, my blood boiled, and my fingers curled into claws as I let out a primal roar. Running at Valerie, I grabbed onto the collar of her cloak with my left hand and let all my force empty onto her, successfully forcing her to the ground. "Let her go _now_!" I shouted.

Valerie threw her head back on the cold stone floor and giggled tremendously.

'Oh you think it's funny?" I shouted as I, sitting on top of her, pulled her up slightly by the collar I still had hold of and then slammed her head back to the ground. "I'm gonna beat the laugh right out of you, you fudgebag!"

At this her face turned serious, and she seemed to look back to Freddie for guidance.

In a cold, hardened tone, he said, "Get rid of the fools. I'll watch the girl."

And then she smirked. "You really should be more careful, Sam," Valerie said in her sickeningly sweet tone. "You don't even know what you just initiated."

Suddenly as Jonah, Gibby, and Shane called to me, I became aware of the fact that the piece of flooring we were sitting on was quickly levitating into the air. While I was distracted, Valerie, too, levitated, and landed herself right back on her feet on the floating island of stone.

My feet crashed to the ground and I turned toward her with wide, surprised eyes.

Her gaze seemed to grow wider with exhilaration as her smirking lips curled up to reveal her pearly whites in a vicious grin. "Bye, bye, Sammy," Valerie called as I was suddenly thrown away from her by some unseen force.

I crashed to the floor, and Gibby called my name, immediately running with Jonah and Shane to my side.

Valerie's giggles soon transformed into maniacal laughter, and as she lifted a hand, the stone island on which she now stood glowed a shadowy and smoky blue with power. Heartless of every kind appeared around us, and Gibby and Shane quickly pulled me to my feet as Jonah ran instantaneously into the fray, slashing and punching.

"Come on!" I shouted at the top of my lungs. "Let's get out there and cover him!"

And so, we, too, rushed into battle. I couldn't tell how everyone else was doing, because I couldn't turn my back on these heartless for a second—they were insanely fast—but I was doing okay.

The only problem is that the fight was never-ending. As many heartless as we defeated, more just kept springing up. And the new ones were always seemingly stronger and faster than the last. It was truly ridiculous—we really were getting nowhere.

And then the thought hit me—it was just like a vampire movie. In every classic vampire story, the way to kill all the other ones is to destroy the _head_ vampire. And right now, that head vampire was Valerie. In fact, she was a bit of a vampire, but more like the ones that sucked lives rather than blood. Just don't know where she put all the lives she stole because she clearly didn't have one of her own. _That_ much was obvious. But that was beside the point.

Sneaking behind the island of stone, luring only one large heartless with me, and leaving the rest to Gibby, Shane, and Jonah, I concocted a plan to get where Valerie was unnoticed.

Grinning, I had found my plan, and I gave the heartless a taunt with a nod of my head. It took the bait and ran at me, but as soon as it was close enough, I jumped up and onto its body for leverage. Then, I swiftly jumped once more onto the platform, silent as the invisible ninja that I'd always hoped to one day become.

My grin stretched noticeably wider. "Hey, Valeficent," I called, coolly, combining her true name with the name of the person whom I saw her as.

The witch turned around in bewilderment and I just shrugged in return.

"Gotta say, head trauma suits you."

Valerie's perplexed look became more pronounced, but before she could even tilt her head, I smacked her across the face with my keyblade, sending her soaring into a wall and to the ground.

Instantly, the floating island melted back into the floor, and the heartless disappeared. I received a few complimentarily whistles from my teammates over my handy-work.

Smirking, I placed my left hand on my hip and held my head high with pride. Valerie's face was red from the blow I had dealt it, and she spat blood to the floor. Not even a second after, she glowed as she healed herself.

"Now, Valerie," I said, leaning down to stand just above her eyelevel. "Spitting blood's not very lady-like."

The glare she shot me had to be a replica of one I'd seen in the Jonas Book of World Records, because she was angrier than I'd seen anyone be in a long time. And the thought that I had caused what I saw in front of me only made my smirk grow—made the victorious and satisfied feeling I held in my gut increase exponentially.

As we all stood in triumph, the fact that Freddie was definitely _not_ Freddie became more obvious as he sauntered up to Valerie and asked if she needed help, calling her by the name "Maleficent." He might've spoken in Freddie's voice, and had Freddie's body, but whoever was in control upstairs was _not_ my good ol' dork.

I watched him in suspicion as my gaze shifted to his hand, which now held an entirely new, entirely _black_ (except for the handle) keyblade.

Gibby appeared to be, again, in the dark to what everyone else seemingly already knew when he asked, "Is that…a keyblade?"

Freddie turned to us, smirking. "Yes, it's a keyblade. But unlike Sam's—" he gestured with a hand towards my gold and silver weapon. "—Which seals people's hearts, mine has the power to _un_lock them."

We stood in silence, with absolutely no idea what to say. All our faces were set in determined glares as Freddie chuckled, as if laughing at our efforts.

"Would you like a demonstration?" he asked, tilting his head to the side.

None of us answered—we simply held our ground, ready to strike if need be.

Freddie's head slowly righted itself and his eyes flashed in excitement, as his smirk grew more pronounced.

Suddenly, he thrust the keyblade backward and straight into Valerie's chest without even having to look at his target.

We all gasped in shock. Not that we liked Valerie at _all_—and it was kind of comforting to see her get stabbed—but just what was he _up_ to? No matter what, you don't _stab_ your ally.

Valerie wrenched on the floor, her eyes wide in surprise. Her limbs scrunched as she whimpered, pain clearly etched on every inch of her face.

Freddie turned back to her, swiftly removing the blade, but not before giving it a noticeable twist first. "You know what to do, Maleficent. Embrace the darkness—let it fill your heart and mind!"

I had had enough of this guy and I glared in disgust. But as I was about to strike him, Valerie's whimpers transformed into laughter. And she weakly stood herself up, leaning on the wall for support. "I feel it," she whispered as she began to glow that disgusting shade of green. "Darkness..." And then she pushed herself completely from the wall, throwing her head back and her arms out as she cried, "Pure darkness!!"

At that moment, Valerie erupted into green flames which quickly grew until a roar sounded from inside the fire, and commanded the flames to die.

Standing before us was a giant black dragon with glowing green eyes. Valerie's voice melded with a beastly growl as she called out, "Prepare to die, Puckett!"

It was then that my shock subsided, and taking its place was pure determination. "Not by your hands in any universe, Valerie!" I boomed.

The dragon seemed to laugh. "Oh, I didn't intend to use _hands_!" she growled as a fresh wave of scalding green fire came shooting towards us.

We just barely managed to roll out of the way—Jonah and I to the left, and Gibby and Shane to the right.

There was no doubt that this was going to be one _hell_ of a battle.

--

**AN: I cannot possibly tell you how much fun I had writing this chapter. Granted, it's shorter than most of the recent ones, but it was just so amazing to write. I really felt like I was in Sam's shoes for this one. The content flowed so freely it was as if Sam was right here, dictating every word of what I should say. Truly, completely phenomenal. Anyway, thank you so very much for all your awesome reviews—I've gotten some of the kindest words ever, from you lot =D I really hope you enjoyed Chapter 14 as much as I did! Until next time!**

**-Fictions**


	15. Chapter 15

Summary: When Carly, Sam, and Freddie buy a new video game from a shady shop, just how crazy will things get when they try to play it?

Disclaimer: No one would believe me even if I _tried_ to say I own iCarly and Kingdom Hearts. So I'll just come out with it—I don't. Dan Schneider and Tetsuya Nomaru do.

iFight For the Light: Chapter 15

As the dragon's claw came smashing down to the ground, the shockwave it produced caused anyone who had not jumped at the appropriate time to collapse to the floor—namely Jonah and Gibby.

Quickly, before another blast of fire came, I gripped Jonah's hand and pulled him upright. I glanced as fast as I could towards Gibby and Shane to make sure they were alright, too, and tried in the little safe time I had to search for a weak spot on Valerie's new scaly, armored body.

Finding none, I couldn't help but sigh and glance upward in exasperation. The light from the sky shining through the window was crimson, as if our surroundings bled for us. Yeah, great way of lifting the mood, atmosphere.

Groaning, I called to my teammates, suddenly struck with inspiration. "Her legs!" I called. "Attack her limbs!"

But as we all ran towards the dragon's massive claws, her tail whipped around and threw me far away.

I winced. Wasn't this hard enough as it is? I mean I only have use of my left hand. Well, on the bright side, if we survive this, when I get back home, I can brag to everyone that I slew a dragon with one hand.

Rolling back to my feet, I ran at Valerie again, now aiming for her exposed neck. Unfortunately, my friends weren't providing an ample enough distraction and her sights fell to me. She quickly slammed her claw onto the floor and I, not expecting this move, was forced to the ground. The dragon swung its long neck and crashed it into my body, again throwing me aside.

I had to admit, however brave my determined comment before the battle was, it _just_ might prove to be false. We were getting our butts handed to us, and it didn't seem like this battle was ending anytime soon, at least not in our favor.

A metallic taste filled my mouth as I took in the fact that we were losing. "Guys!" I cried out, now in pure distress. "I need help!" It was one of the only times in my life that I asked for help. I had always looked at that sort of thing as weak, but if this was our dying moment, I might as well, you know? I hadn't expected anyone to answer back. And if anyone _were_ to answer back, I never expected it to be the voices that had.

"We're here!" Spencer and Freddie's mom seemed to shout simultaneously as they leapt from the shadows, along with Principal Franklin, Rodney, and Shannon.

"Don't worry!" Shannon called as she lifted into the air, her hands behind her back. "Victory is imminent." She smiled and closed her eyes, her body glowing a bright blue.

Suddenly, a feeling of supreme energy, health, and overall hope filled me.

Valerie stared in perplexity as Principal Franklin walked leisurely to Gibby. "Come Gibby," he said with nothing but courage in his tone. "It's time to get to work."

Gibby gave one shocked but curt nod and the two began firing spell after spell towards the dragon that hissed in rage.

The creature swung its tail towards the two wizards, but was immediately blocked by both Shane's shield and Spencer's sword. "About time we stepped into action, too, don't you think?" Spencer asked Shane, his eyes still glued on Valerie.

Shane gave a half-shake of his head, probably hoping to crack his neck. "Ready when you are."

With one sharp nod of his head, Spencer began a barrage of slashes at the dragon, and Shane followed, spinning like a top with his shield.

Wordlessly, Jonah and Rodney had already begun working together to attack the ugly creature—Jonah slashing with his metal glove, and Rodney throwing various explosive items at her.

And at that moment, I was left with only one person to team up with. A gentle hand was placed on my shoulder. "Sweetie?"

I turned around to face Mrs. Benson.

She smiled sadly—warmly—at me. "I'm sorry you're stuck with me, because you really don't seem to like me, but," she raised a fist to show her determination. "I'm going to help you win this. So just trust me, okay?" Mrs. Benson asked with a tilted head.

I stood still for a second as I mulled over the situation I now found myself in. I wasn't really sure I could depend on Mrs. Benson's abilities, but what did I have to lose, right? Hesitantly, I nodded to her. "Okay. I trust you."

She nodded to me in return in an uncharacteristically slow and calm manner. "Alright," she said as she stepped behind me and grabbed my middle. My eyebrows knit together in confusion as she added, "Get ready."

Before I could ask what I had to get ready for we were in the air, soaring as if we were in flight.

As we began to descend, Mrs. Benson shouted over the noise that the wind rushing rapidly over us created. "Every time we land, you need to slash!" I felt her take a practiced quick, deep breath. "We'll have this puppy gone in no time!"

We crashed onto Valerie's hide at that moment, and I did what Freddie's mom said. The dragon growled, swinging her tail to knock us off her back.

That did no good, though, because we were already back in the air, leaping to the next spot of attack.

We landed down on the ground between the witch-dragon's hind legs and forelegs. I struck with as much force possible on her middle, and she growled with even more ferocity than she had previously, the explosions from Rodney and the multi-colored blasts of magic from Principal Franklin and Gibby appearing like fireworks in the background.

Mrs. Benson leapt again, and we now landed right on Valerie's narrow neck. I practically yelled out as I thrust my blade at her ridges.

The dragon let out what sounded like a mix between a primal roar and a human scream as she reared upward. Before we could slide down, past her ridges and to her extremely dangerous tail, which was probably her plan, Mrs. Benson jumped, bringing us back to the ground in safety.

The moment Valerie exposed her underbelly, she was bombarded with slashes, magic, and explosives.

Letting out another pained shriek, she began to shrink and morph, until she was once more just a whimpering, sniveling little girl. As she tried to run away, she continued to change, her body completely melting into bubbling black goop.

I shuffled my foot roughly on the stone floor to get rid of the tar-like substance that had melted under my shoes. Glaring in disgust at the mess, I mumbled, "Always knew that girl was ugly on the inside." I didn't have to turn around to know Freddie—or at least his body—was once again present, and I spun back and called to him, "So, what now?" I shrugged. "Looks like you're down one crony."

Freddie chuckled. "Valerie was merely a fool. She let the heartless use her—overcome her and even as it did, she had no awareness of it. Besides," he said as he walked through the black liquid, as if it were only rain. "She'd already done what was required of her—her life served no other purpose."

My lip curled up in repulsion and Jonah spoke the words that were on my mind. "You're _sick_," he almost spat.

Freddie grinned, raising his eyebrows almost flirtatiously in my direction, and I began to run at him, in spite of everything I felt for him. I shoved aside all that—all that he was in the past to only see the man he was right now, or rather, the man that was _him_ right now. Not that that really made sense, but then again, what _did_ in this place?

The dork put up a hand to try and stop me and calmly said, "You may have noticed that one of your friends is missing."

Instantly, I stopped and looked around. Carly, glass coffin and all, was gone. "Where did you take her?!" I yelled, immediately falling back into rage.

Apparently, I had played right into Freddie's hands and his grin spread. "Follow me and find out," he said as he backed into a portal of swirling shadows. It remained after he had stepped through, lingering for us to join him.

"Come on, everybody!" I shouted to the now huge group behind me.

But as I took off running, I was stopped by Shannon's soft voice. "We can't go with you, Sam."

I turned around. The gang from Traverse Town was all frowning. "What?" I asked slowly, my eyebrows furrowing in confusion and disappointment.

"We can't go any further, kiddo," Rodney said with a shrug.

"We only came to help you with this battle, Sam," added Spencer.

I shook my head. "How did you guys even _know_ we needed help?"

"Why, we _heard_ you, sweetie," Mrs. Benson smiled comfortingly.

"Heard me?" I scoffed and let my gaze wander to the side for a second before shifting it back to them. "What, did I really cry out that loud?"

Shannon giggled, placing her hand up to her mouth. "No. That's not how we heard you."

My eyebrows furrowed further. "I don't understand what you guys are sayin'."

"We heard your call for help with our hearts, Sam," answers Principal Franklin.

I turned my gaze to Ted, my mouth stuck in a half-open position. Sure I knew my heart was powerful, but I really had no idea just how powerful it supposedly was.

"You see, Samantha, you kept us in your heart. And we kept you in ours," he smiled warmly.

Spencer nodded. "When your heart is connected, _you_ are connected."

Shane tilted his head. "So you're saying if people are in each other's hearts, then no matter how far apart, they can still hear and feel each other?"

Ted beamed and nodded. "That's exactly what I'm saying."

My eyes suddenly widened in realization. Since the beginning of the journey, I'd been hearing Freddie's thoughts. And a couple of times, it looked as if he'd heard mine, too. So, does that mean—

"You're in Freddie's heart, Sam," Principal Franklin said, pulling me from my thoughts.

My head shot up.

"And he's in yours," he nodded. "That's why your walls of memory were painted with him."

My face was blank, and my tone matched my expression as I thought aloud. "He was in every single one…"

"It's because you care deeply for him, Sam." Ted shook his head. "Underneath it all, you always have."

I shook my head, my brows furrowing. "But he doesn't feel—"

"If he _didn't_ feel the same way, then you would not be able to hear his thoughts as clearly as you do."

"But the last couple of times, all I heard were whispers!"

"Was the sound blurred?" Principal Franklin tilted his head. "Gurgled?"

"No," I shook my head slowly. "Just echoed."

"Well, the echo of thoughts is normal," Ted shrugged. "The thoughts were only a whisper because Freddie's true self is being smothered by the darkness. It's hard to think for yourself when experiencing a process of such intensity as Freddie was undergoing. The fact that he was able to let you hear him at _all_ is just…purely amazing." He smiled again. "The intensity of his feelings for you run just as deep—if not deeper—than yours for him."

I shook my head rapidly, tears threatening to fall. It was impossible. Freddie _couldn't_ possibly feel that way for me. Not when he's spent his whole life being completely head-over-heels for Carly. There wasn't any way, and all this talk was doing was giving me false hope.

Wait, false _hope_? I began to wonder just when I'd started hoping that Freddie might feel this way about me. I could pinpoint no exact moment in time.

I searched for an idea that would dismiss Principal Franklin's words—a boulder that I could tie down my quickly rising hopes to. "How come I can't hear him at all, now, then?"

"Well, that's because he's been buried, Sam," Ted nodded slowly. "He's been completely crushed by the darkness. But he's still there. And all he needs is for you to dig him out."

Those words brought a determined smile to my face.

Ted caught my smile and reflected it right back at me. "We must leave you now, Sam. But have confidence, and nothing will be able to hold you back."

I grinned as we all said goodbye. This time seemed more final than the last, but for some reason, it wasn't sad in the least. I hugged everyone this time, but as I was about to march off into the portal, a hand caught my shoulder.

"Sam?" Jonah questioned behind me. I turned to him. "I'm gonna be saying goodbye, too…as long as I've accomplished what I came here for."

A slight frown settled on my face. Jonah was a good addition to our group. But if it was his time to leave the game, who was I to stop him?

"So, do you forgive me?" he asked nervously, as he extended a hand to me.

My grin returned. "For now, yeah," I said, gripping his hand and giving it a firm shake. Letting go of his palm, I added, "Now get out of here before I have to kick your emo butt, too."

Jonah laughed and went back to the group from Traverse Town. Smiling their farewells, they all took each other's hands, and disappeared in a flash of light.

As I walked toward the dark portal, Principal Franklin's words echoed in my mind.

"_He's been completely crushed by the darkness. But he's still there. And all he needs is for you to dig him out."_

It was time to do some digging.

--

**AN: Goodness, writing this chapter left me completely jittery! Unfortunately, that jitteriness left me with a headache but…eh, what are you gonna do? Oh! I really hope you enjoyed this chapter! It was almost chilling to write. Fantastic emotions this story invokes in me, really. Anyway! I look forward to hearing your feedback on this chapter! As Edward R. Murrow used to say: "Good night and good luck."**

**-Fictions**


	16. Chapter 16

Summary: When Carly, Sam, and Freddie buy a new video game from a shady shop, just how crazy will things get when they try to play it?

Disclaimer: "Well, we both know you don't want Shawn dead." "Oh, how do _you_ know who I want dead?" You see that? That's an example of something I don't own. That's from Boy Meets World. This chapter also holds things I do not own—like iCarly and Kingdom Hearts, which belong to Dan Schneider and Tetsuya Nomaru.

iFight For the Light: Chapter 16

When we stepped out of the portal, we were in another large room. The majority of this one was filled by a massive staircase, and at the top rested what looked to be a heart-shaped vortex.

Courage filled my entire being, and I wore my bravest face ever as I climbed the stairs. But as I reached the top, all of my bravery melted into concern. And I ran to Carly, whose body lay limply, carelessly on the floor in her state of unconscious and for-the-love-of-meat-hopefully-not-dead-ness.

I shook her and called her name, disregarding the fact that Freddie was present, watching—observing.

"Carly Shay has lost her heart," he spoke, cutting through my cries. "Shaking her will do no good, nor will calling to her."

Shane and Gibby slowly walked into the area on either side of me, their jaws clenched and weapons raised, prepared to fight at any second.

Freddie laughed "Sam, you'd _really _have them hurt me? I'm one of your best friends."

I shook my head in outrage. "You're not Freddie!" I shouted. "You're not my best friend—you wouldn't just be sitting there while _yours_ is suffering if you were!"

Freddie suddenly smirks maliciously, as if he's getting some sick pleasure out of this. "I told you that you'd rue it, did I not, Sam Puckett? Regardless," he said, leaping off of the platform from which he sat. "As long as Carly's heart is gone, Kingdom Hearts—" he gestured to the vortex. "—Remains shut," the dork finished with a sigh.

Gone. _Gone_. Carly was _gone_? For good? I looked down. No, it couldn't be. My best friend couldn't really be--…I was unable to finish my thoughts as a fresh wave of tears slid down my cheeks. It was like the island when she'd first disappeared all over again. Only this time, I was forced to face reality—forced to see that even though her body lay right in front of me, she wasn't really there.

Behind my tears and booming thoughts, I heard Freddie chuckle. "Oh, poor baby," he mocked.

Suddenly, I spoke, a new fire fueled by something I couldn't quite place burning within me. "Freddie," I barely whispered. "Freddie would know what to do." And he would, if only--…"Nevel!" I shouted as my head flew up. "Give Freddie back his heart! Do it now!" I threatened, hot tears of anger now coursing down my face. My emotions were on overload, and my body was doing anything it could to release the energy it created—and that included yelling and fighting.

"First give Carly back hers!" Freddie shouts, pointing his keyblade at my chest.

At that moment, the area of my heart glowed golden. But before I could question it, a pang ran through my core, and I fell to my knees.

"Don't you see?" Freddie asked, walking closer. "Carly's heart is responding. It's been with you this entire journey from the start, and you had no idea!" he laughs. "But that's not surprising, since this is _you_ we're talking about after all."

"I've had Carly's heart inside of me this whole time?" I asked as calmly as I could as pain shot through my body.

"Nevel, you called me." There was a grin in Freddie's voice. "I am Ansem! Master of Darkness!"

"Really?" Gibby shouted from my left.

"Because you sound more like Nevel, Master of Assholery," concluded Shane from my right, just before the two boys took off in a run at him.

Freddie merely lifted a hand, and with a yelp, Shane and Gibby were both tossed aside. He walked closer toward me, my only usable that that I was using to brace myself on the floor threatening to give out underneath me. "Now, Carly Shay, I have come to release you. Give me your heart!"

At that second, Carly's voice echoed in my head. "Sam, watch out!!" and I threw my keyblade up just in time to block his from swinging down on my head.

Still pushing back on his blade, I stood. "I won't let you defeat me!" I shouted defiantly. "I'll save both Carly _and_ Freddie's hearts!"

Struggling, Freddie called back, "Why bother?!"

"Because they're counting on me," I said calmly as I effortlessly shoved him away. "And I'll never _ever_ let my friends down."

I began to glow at that moment. And to my surprise, Freddie's chest began to shine as well. A new power seemed to course through my being as I was surrounded by light, and the black of my outfit was brushed away by the brightness—sent soaring through the atmosphere like sand struck by wind—and turned pure white. The red, makeshift sling melted away from my right arm, and I clenched and unclenched my right fist as orbs of light floated to my hand. My old keyblade was gone, but in its place were two new ones—a practically all-white one with angel wings on the handle that my mind told me was named Oathkeeper, and a pure black one with demon wings on _its_ holding spot. My mind told me this one was Oblivion. And I smirked as I instantly thought of yin and yang—a concept I knew very much about.

When the light faded, and I was back in the room with the massive staircase, Freddie was slashing at me, but I immediately caught his keyblade between my two. "Yeah, I _really_ don't think so," was all I said before I pushed him away, shoving him yards back.

He tried to run at me again, but I ducked, leaning on my left leg, with my right leg splayed out. As Freddie sliced for my skull, I used my right keyblade to smack into his back, which promptly knocked the wind out of him, and then used the left to trip him at his ankles. Successfully flipping him over, I jumped to my feet and back, knowing retaliation was not too far behind.

In a matter of nanoseconds, Freddie was on his feet again, and slashing at me. I just jumped over him. Yeah, that's right—I jumped _over_ Freddie. And I did it effortlessly. It was as if this form allowed my to actually fly.

Seizing the opportunity, I land a strike on his back. Unfortunately, that pushes him away, and gives him enough time to turn back to face me. I try to strike him again, but he easily blocks me.

He begins a barrage of slashes, and the fight begins to become reminiscent of my first battle with Spencer. Only this time, I'm able to block all of his hits in various ways, swinging my keyblades to increase my momentum and adrenaline.

The first chance I get, I begin my own chain of swings. He's blocking them, too, but not as effectively as I had his. It's much easier to do this with two keyblades—while one's down, the other is up allowing for an endless continuous motion. I decide to surprise him, and break the pattern, though, swinging my right keyblade under his defenses. It crashes into him and sends him flying towards the far-away ceiling.

Crouching down, I jump and soar to the ceiling before he can make it there. I angle my keyblades so that they'll both hit Freddie at the same time, and then cause him to go zooming back to the earth.

I get back to the floor, again, before him, as my new superhuman speed has permitted and hold my arms out, one over the other. "Batter up!" I call as I wait for my cue. And just as Freddie's body is in the perfect altitude, I call back upon my all-star little league memories and swing, sending him flying at breakneck speeds into the wall.

Freddie, now a heap on the floor, groans as my outfit flashes and returns to its normal color. My new ones are gone, but my old keyblade is back, and is held in my right hand, which I smile at discovering is truly no longer broken.

What looks like black ash flies from Freddie's body and up through the ceiling. Gibby and Shane run worriedly to my side as he sits up and rubs his head.

He whispers something, but I can't hear it—he's too far away and his voice is too low. But it _looks_ like he mouthed my name. "Sam!" he shouts louder, with the same movement of his lips as if confirming my thoughts. Freddie smiles widely as he rushes to me and embraces me.

I want to smile. I want to take this moment—the one I've waited for, for so long—in and just enjoy it. But I can't, because Nevel's words from before the fight echo through my head. About setting Carly free.

Freddie's still lost in his joy. "I can't believe it—you did it!" he shouts as he squeezes me tighter, laughing with pure content. "I didn't think you heard the real me," he says lowly. "But you did! All this time…you heard me!"

My eyes fall as I realize what I must do—as I realize how what I'm about to do will affect those around me.

"Sam?" Freddie questions, finally sensing a problem. "What's wrong?" he asks as he pulls me only a fraction away so he can see my face.

I numbly shake my head and answer in an empty voice. "Too many things, Freddie." I gently walk backwards out of his grasp. His face is confused, but for once, I don't blame the nub. Besides, it's better to have him confused than knowing what I'm about to do.

I quickly run to the center of the floor where Carly is, and grip Nevel's former keyblade. But I can't act fast enough. Gibby and Shane gasp and I swear I hear at least one of them whisper, "No!"

Freddie's in shock, too, and he calls to me, pleadingly. "Wait, Sam! What are you doing?!" he asks. "Stop!"

Keeping the numbness in my voice, I shake my head. "I have to do this, Freddie," I say as my eyes instinctually close. "You can't stop me. Besides," I scoffed as a half-smile appeared on my face. "Look at it this way—Carly will be back, and you love her." Principal Franklin was _wrong_. Freddie may care about me, but there's no way that he feels the way that I—

"I _don't_ love Carly!" Freddie yells, his voice shaking as my eyes threaten to snap open. "It's been a long journey," he mutters. "But I finally realize…" Freddie pauses, as if he has to force the words out from deep down inside of him. "It's you, Sam! I love _you_! It's been you all along! Please," he pleads again, his voice strong in only emotion now. "You can't go."

Tears course down my cheeks through my closed eyes, and my face contorts with pain—_actual_ pain. It feels as if my insides are burning—combusting from the core. "I have to, Freddie," I answer. "Sure, you may not _love _Carly, but you still want her back, right? She's your friend, isn't she?" Even if he said no, there was no way I would turn down the chance to give Carly her life back. She was my best friend, and one of the only people in the world to ever understand me before I even understood myself.

"Of course she is," Freddie answered as if it were obvious. "But there has to be some other way," he rationalizes. "Some way that doesn't involve you—"

"No, Freddie," I cut him off. "_This_ is the only way." I paused for a while. And there was complete silence as I let my words sink into my own mind as well. "So let me do this," I whispered.

The sharp and shaky breaths behind me confirmed that while he was not at all happy with what was happening, he would no longer protest my actions.

"Freddie," I said, turning to him, opening my eyes just this one last time. This way, though his face was saddened and tear-soaked, it would be the last thing I saw. "I love you, too."

And with that, I shut my eyes as I thrust the keyblade into my heart. As I began to fall back, I smiled as I heard Carly's rushed voice break through the silence. "Sam? Sam!" she shouted. "No!!!" I felt what I knew were her arms touch my back, before the sensation of flight from when we were first sucked into the game overtook me. And it was then that I knew I was gone.

When I opened my eyes, all I saw was darkness—cold, empty, sad darkness, exactly like before.

But suddenly…

A light?

"_It's you, Sam! I love _you_! It's been you all along! Please…you can't go."_

--

**AN: THE END! Haha! No, I'm just kidding. Much shorter chapter, though. But I feel like a lot was definitely accomplished. Hope you all enjoyed, and that the battle wasn't**_** too**_** rushed. It had to go at least a little quick, based upon the speed Sam gained when she went into Final Form. Oh yeah, in case you didn't know, that's what she did XD Anyway, so yeah! Look forward to hearing your comments!**

**PS. That last bit? Totally read it again as the song Close Your Eyes from Buffy The Vampire Slayer (it's this amazing sad music…) plays in the background. Starting from about where Freddie comes back, I'd say. (Just remove the spaces from the link.) http: //uk. youtube. com/ watch?v=Q5C92qy7mX8**

**-Fictions**


	17. Chapter 17

Summary: When Carly, Sam, and Freddie buy a new video game from a shady shop, just how crazy will things get when they try to play it?

Disclaimer: Oh, please let me stop these XD I don't own iCarly or Kingdom Hearts. Dan Schneider and Tetsuya Nomaru do.

iFight For the Light: Chapter 17

It's one of my visions again. It has to be, because I, Sam Puckett, shouldn't exist anymore. Right?

But that's what I don't get, because there was this warm, comforting light, and then Freddie's voice, and now, I'm here. In a sense.

Maybe I was a ghost and this was the afterlife, where I was doomed to wander the looming halls of the dark castle for the rest of eternity. And no one would notice me as I faded in and out of this so-called reality.

Something was still strange, though. My hearing was echoed, and my sight was hazy. What gives? I thought that I would at least get a _little_ better reception. But it's strange, because some people I see clearly, while others (being the majority) I see, as I said, blurred.

Gibby and Shane were fuzzy. So was Carly, but I could easily make out her shape as she leaned on Freddie for support. Freddie was completely crystal clear, and he had his arms around Carly as he comforted her while she cried. Carly's sobbing was echoed, but Freddie's gentle "shush"ing came through interference-free. Man, this hearing was hard to get used to.

As I took in the sight, I was reminded of when Freddie embraced me. I scolded myself. Why hadn't I said anything—_done_ anything back? Wishing to breathe out a sigh, I remembered my reason. It would've hurt me and hurt him—hurt them too much had I given into my urge to react—had I allowed myself a small smile; had I reached over and held him right back like I wanted so badly to do. But I knew that if I had put my arms around him, I would've never let go. But what I did—it had to be done. I had to give Carly her life back.

Suddenly, Freddie's profession of love and plea to me echoed through my head for the hundredth time that minute. I'm sorry, Freddie. I wish I could've stayed. And you truly have no idea how much I mean that.

At that moment, a face I wish I hadn't seen as clearly as I did appeared out of a shadowed portal. It was Nevel, and yes, for the first time since the beginning of the journey, he was showing his true face.

"Carly," he called in an intrigued tone. His voice, unfortunately, was also clear as a bell. "You're awake. I'm sorry I missed that." Nevel nodded. "Well, that means the keyhole is now open." He sighed. "It's been fun—really, it has. But you've served your only purpose, and now I'm afraid there's just no reason for you all to exist anymore."

No! No way was he hurting my friends. Oh, I would find some way to get this kid—I'd haunt him. I'd find some way to either break his skull or drive him completely insane.

"Heartless!" Nevel's voice boomed. "Attack!" But at that moment that I felt myself _truly_ join the scene, I discovered I _wasn't_ a ghost. I was a heartless.

My senses were heightened. I gained full perception of my targets—of my friends. I felt all the light in the area—all the warmth—and knew how to take it. But I realized I didn't _want_ to.

Light. And then Freddie's words. And now, this. Suddenly, everything fit together. Freddie tied me to this world. His words—his heart allowed me to keep mine. The only thing I was missing was my body, and an apparatus of speech.

There were more heartless around me, all twitching around, hungry for warmth. And even though I was outnumbered and I knew I didn't stand a chance, I was willing to face them all to save my friends.

"Run!" Gibby shouts. "We gotta run!" He turns to look at Freddie and Carly to see if they understand and are willing to follow. He doesn't need to turn to Shane to know he'll go with him—team telepathy.

"Come on, come on!" yells Shane in a panicked voice. "Let's go, you guys!"

Hesitantly, Freddie and Carly exchange determined looks, and nod, as if reaching a silent agreement. They take off into a run, Gibby and Shane close by their sides.

Oh no, you guys… I watch them run off and I know exactly where they're going. They're trying to reach the Gummi ship so that they can leave this world and go to somewhere remotely safe. I had to stop them, or else I might never see them again.

I ran after them. I ran through the dark portal, down the long corridor, only to discover that the giant lift was gone. Of course they would take it. Perfect—now I was trapped. But then I remembered, heartless could sink into the ground. Well, when in Rome, I figured. (Gibby would be so proud that I got that right.) I gave off something that I hoped resembled a shrug before crushing my body into the ground. Inhaling a breath with a shadow organ that replaced my lungs, I disappeared into the floor.

When I finally surfaced, I was in the Entry Hall, and I crept lightly into the room as I took in the conversation around me.

"We gotta get out of here!" Gibby yelled.

"No!" Carly protested. "We can't leave Sam!"

"Sam is gone!" Gibby shouted back. "You saw!"

"We don't believe that!" Freddie bellowed defiantly. "Sam wouldn't just give up fighting!"

Gibby groans in frustration. "She had no _choice_, she—"

"G-Guys," Shane stutters out. "There's a heartless following us."

Oh, what the heck? How am I a better ninja when I'm bigger and have the ability to speak than now?

Gibby glared. "I'll get it."

I shrank back a bit for fear that he was going to send lightning at me or something.

Freddie raised an eyebrow at my reaction. "It…doesn't seem to be attacking," he said slowly, in confusion. Thank you, perceptive Benson blood!

Gibby groaned. "Stupid heartless, go away!" he said as he bonked me on the head with his staff.

Um, hello? Ouch? He may have been my friend and my teammate, but I swear, if that left a bump on my head, I was going to take his heart.

"Wait a second," Freddie says, drawing my attention back to him. "Carly," he looks at her. "Do you…feel that, too?"

Carly's eyes widened with realization. "Oh my gosh!" she shouted. "Sam?!" she questioned as if I could answer.

Suddenly, a group of heartless fell from the ceiling, circling us. "Oh fudgedooles!" Shane yelled, and everyone took off running. Except for Freddie who stayed with me.

It was Carly who turned around. "Sam!" she called in worry. "Freddie, what are you doing?!"

Freddie didn't answer her, he just turned to me. "This time," he began, pausing slightly. "_I'll_ save _you_." And then he threw his arms around me as the heartless began to pounce.

"You guys!!!" Carly shouted in anguish.

There was a big, shimmering flash of light as I felt myself grow—felt all the heartless being pushed away from us—and I was me again. I had my body back and everything.

He was still holding onto me, and this time, I held onto him, too. "Freddie," I whispered as I rested my head as close to his shoulder as I could get without standing on my tippy-toes—he really had gotten much taller. "Thank you."

His embrace tightened, as if to assure me that even though we were still surrounded by heartless, everything was alright.

We heard what sounded like a blade being unsheathed and Carly shouted, "Whoa!"

The intensity of her shock caused us to break apart, and as we turned to her, we saw that she was now holding what looked to be a giant pure gold key in her hands.

"Hey!" I beamed with excitement. "You got a keyblade!"

Freddie's dark wing blade appeared in his hands and he laughed. "Mine's back, too!"

I grinned, placing my hands on my hips. (It felt good to do that with both hands again—my right hip was getting lonely.) "Looks like my being here controls whether you guys have your keyblades or not." My grin stretched with pride and I chortled. "You really would be lost without me."

"Joke later," Carly said as she swiftly got into a professional stance as if she'd been fighting beside us the entire time. Well, she _was_ Spencer's little sister. "Fight now."

I laughed, getting into a stance of my own. "Who's joking, Carls?" I smirked. "I've learned that you really need to be serious in situations like this."

Giggling, she looked to me and smiled warmly. "It's good to have you back, Sam," she said softly.

I beamed right back at her. "You, too, Carly."

And then, the five of us jumped into battle

We all had such unique fighting styles. I had already noticed Gibby and Shane's, of course, from fighting along side them for so long. But Freddie seemed to like to be stealthy—often dodging and making it appear that he was incapable of attacking. And once enough heartless were lulled into a false sense of security, he'd jump at them with practiced and precise swings.

Carly relied a lot on magic, like Gibby. She'd fire spell after spell at her enemies, and when they had become weak enough, she shot up like a canon with swings and jumps of insane agility.

Needless to say we beat the heartless in no time. And immediately after the fight ended, Carly ran to me. "What do we do now?" she asked, dutifully awaiting orders as her smile brimmed with excitement.

I smirked at her expression. Who knew that straight A, goody-goody student _Carly Shay_ would get that much of a kick out of fighting? "There's a portal upstairs—I think it's a keyhole," I nodded. "We need to seal it."

"Aye-aye," Carly said with a salute. And then she took off running. "Come on, you guys!" she called back to us.

Shane's eyes widened. "Hey, wait! You shouldn't be running that far ahead alone!" He jogged after her.

Gibby groaned in annoyance. "Does _every_ girl run that fast?" he asked rhetorically before speeding up after his allies.

I stayed in my spot and grinned after them all. I'd be able to catch up to them in a flash, anyway. Carly was fast but she wasn't as fast as me. As I fell into my thoughts, I forgot the fact that I wasn't alone.

"Sam," Freddie's voice called from behind me, and almost instinctually, I turned towards it.

"'Sup, Benson?" I asked.

"Look," he sighed deeply. "I'm sorry that I didn't believe you when you said that you _were_ looking for Carly." Shaking his head and narrowing his now closed eyes as if scolding himself, he continued. "And God, I'm sorry for what I said to you. I had no right."

"Yeah, well," I began slowly, pursing my lips. "You were wrong about me. Gee, what a shocker," I said with sarcasm as I waved my arms around.

Freddie ignored my sarcasm. "I don't even know why I trusted her!" he groaned.

"Dude, stop beating yourself up. She manipulated you, and got you to see us at the wrong time—then she shoved thoughts in your head, as par normal of Valerie." I shrugged. "All you did wrong was believe her. But, you're you, you know? You'll believe any pretty girl that winks at you."

He glared. "That's not—" Groaning, he decided to go for a different line of speech, his face now returned to looking calm and neutral—maybe even a little shameful. "Sam, if I ever do anything stupid like this again, just—" he took a deep breath, fumbling with his hands as he tried to think of what to say. "Just find a way to get through to me. Any way. Hit me, even."

"Don't worry, dork," I said coolly, placing an arm around his shoulders. "If that ever happens, I'll just do exactly what I did here—find a sword, and kick the stuffing out of you with it." I grinned and retracted my arm, sending him a playful shove before landing my hands in my pockets.

Instead of glaring, like I thought he would, he smirked. "Speaking of swords, you know, you've gotten pretty good at handling that blade." He gestured with a nod of his head to my hands as if I were still holding my keyblade. "I bet you might even be able to take me in fencing now."

My eyebrows knit together. "Freddie, I could take you _before_ any of this happened." Sensing the slight double entendre of my words, my cheeks turned an uncharacteristic shade of pink as my face froze.

Freddie stepped into my line of sight and smirked wider than before.

I just rolled my eyes and shoved him, harder this time, in warning.

He laughed, and I couldn't help but smile as I began my stride again.

"Wow," he sighed, now behind me. "I can't believe I just saved _Sam Puckett_."

I glared. "Can it, dork."

Freddie continued. "No, really, I can't believe I—supposed full-fledged _nerd_ just protected and saved the toughest girl at school." When I glanced back, the look he shot me was reminiscent of the one he had given me during our bet that I couldn't go a week without insulting him, when he'd invited me to go with him to a Galaxy Wars convention.

My glare intensified. "Didn't you hear what I just said? I said, '_Can it, __**dork**_.'"

As I reached to give him an even _harder_ shove—that would've probably sent his scrawny butt toppling to the floor—he grabbed my forearm. "Do you remember what _else_ you said?" he asked. His face was suddenly serious.

I knew exactly what he was talking about, but before I had the chance to respond with _anything_, I made the mistake of looking into Freddie's eyes.

He was staring into mine. (Uch! Curse Spencer for teaching him that trick!) And then, my exhilarated feeling returned. My heart was pounding in my chest like I'd just run a marathon. I wanted to look away, but I couldn't. I was trapped in his surprisingly deep brown eyes.

At that moment, he pulled me in close by my forearm that he still apparently had hold of and let his lips crash onto mine.

I'm not sure how my heart didn't burst with how hard it was beating. But as I moved my hands up to hold his face, and he wrapped his arms around my waist, I swore I felt the greatest feeling ever known to mankind. It felt as if I had all the knowledge in the world—all the _luxuries_ in the world; everything I ever wanted or could ever possibly want—all in that kiss. It quenched a hunger inside of me that could not be satisfied with any meat in the universe. And suddenly, the bit of myself that seemed to be missing for so long—the part of me that I never even knew was gone—had returned. It was Freddie. He was a part of me. Our hearts were one, and so, as Spencer said, _we_ were one.

And in that instant, everything felt so _real_. I know, stupid choice of words, right? Because this _was_ real. But there was no better way to describe it. If felt like out of all the things that have happened, this was the one that existed the most.

Freddie broke the kiss, sensing he'd have to be the one to do it. And he was right because if he hadn't, we would have just stood there while the rest of the worlds fell apart. Gently, he took my hands from his cheeks and held them, smoothly rubbing his thumbs across the backs of my palms.

As my brain kicked in again, I answered his question with a soft, "Yes," that came out in way more of a whisper than I'd wanted it to be.

Freddie grinned slowly. "Good. Because I meant what I said."

He took off walking, but my legs refused to budge.

He turned back. "Come on, you're not gonna let the rest of the worlds be destroyed, are you?"

I shook my head determinedly. My legs, however, stayed stubbornly still.

"Oh, is someone flustered?" Freddie asked, teasingly. "Maybe I'm a better kisser than you thought I was, Sam," he said, still walking—backwards now—as he crossed his arms over his chest.

I glared, though I knew my blush betrayed me. "In your dreams, Benson."

Freddie laughed haughtily. "You are!"

My glare tightened. I wasn't finding the situation as amusing as he was, apparently.

"Hey," he said, with a pure smile now. "Bet you can't beat me in a race in the state you're in right now."

"Psh! You're delusional, Freddie!" I shouted defiantly as I took off into a run and reached the point he'd walked to.

Freddie began to run, too, then, and we were neck-and-neck. "Oh, yeah?" he asked with a grin. "We'll see about that, Puckett!"

And we raced back to our friends. Maybe it was the kiss that did it, but everything finally felt like it was turning-up.

We made it to Carly, Gibby, and Shane at about the same time—I beat Freddie by a millisecond or so. They had waited for us at the first lift-stop that would drop us off outside, on a ledge of the castle.

"Where were you guys?" Carly questioned curiously. "We were waitin' for ya."

"We were arguing," I answered quickly, but as I glanced to my side, I saw Freddie was grinning. I fought off the urge to stab him in the ribs with my elbow.

Carly alternated glances between the two of us and a small, knowing smile graced her lips.

I oddly felt as if I missed something. Rolling my eyes, I spoke, "I can see you guys want to be destroyed along with this world. You have fun with that." Mock cheer lined my voice. "I, however, don't. So, I'm heading on up to the top of the castle. You can join me if you want." My feet stomped onto the lift and the rest of my party followed quickly after.

As soon as the tram stopped, we all ran off and outside, to find another lift-stop to take us to the second ledge. But as we rushed along, the ground rumbled beneath our feet and cracked. We instantly stopped and concentrated on simply keeping our balance.

"Since when does this place get earthquakes?" Gibby shouted in a panic.

"That's not it!" dismissed Carly. "The world's falling apart! Aw man, we're never gonna make it in time!"

Suddenly, as if to make matters worse, a group of wyvern heartless flew over, blocking our path.

"Perfect!" I yelled sarcastically, throwing my hands in the air.

"Wait!" Freddie calls, grabbing my arm, and while holding onto it with his right hand, points with his left.

"What?" I asked, yanking my arm back harshly.

"Maybe they can help us," he said, a sound of epiphany in his voice.

"What are you talkin' about, Freddork?" I asked. "Are you forgetting you don't have the dark mojo anymore? Those things are about as unlikely to listen to you as I am."

Freddie laughs. "No, not like that," he says, waving my thought off with a hand. "_Maybe_ we can hitch a ride."

My eyes widen with sudden inspiration, but soon a devious grin appears on my face.

Freddie goes on. "If we can grab their legs then we can—you're not listening to me, are you?" he asks, perceptively.

"Nope," I say bluntly, shaking my head.

He sighed as I walked back far behind the group.

"Sam, what are you doing?" Shane calls back in confusion. The others are probably already wise to my plan, or are at least wise enough not to question my actions.

Oh, you'll see. Suddenly, I take off into a run, past the group now. All of their heads turned to watch me as I zoomed by. And then I leapt right onto the back of one of the startled wyverns.

"That works, too!" Freddie shouts from the seemingly far-off ground and I feel an uncontrollable grin slide its way onto my face.

The wyvern growls and begins to flail, but I immediately put my keyblade to its throat. "Take me to the top. I don't suggest you disobey."

Everyone follows my actions as quickly as possible. Gibby's the only one who has to resort to Freddie's default plan of holding onto the wyvern's legs. And we arrive at the top of the castle almost immediately.

Fleeing the wyverns that were probably ready to kill us right about now, we ran into the castle, through the long corridor, through the still-open dark portal and up the stairs. "You guys ready?" I asked, looking back and forth at Freddie and then Carly.

"Yeah," Carly nodded firmly.

"What do we do?" asked Freddie.

"We lift our keyblades to the portal, then everything else follows through by itself," Carly and I answer simultaneously.

When I looked to her, Carly was beaming. I blinked in puzzlement.

She laughed. "Hey, I was with you the whole time, remember?"

Slowly, I grinned, and then turned my attention back to the vortex. "Ready? And…now!"

Beams of light flew from the tips of our three keyblades and converged at the center of their journey towards the portal. Once the now giant shaft of light hit the heart shape, the portal glowed. But after the brightness faded, all that was left behind was a solid stonewall.

The ground shook beneath us, as if angry that we had disturbed the darkness. It was strange—this shouldn't have been happening. "Why would Nevel want to destroy his own base?!" I shouted.

Carly gave an over enthusiastic shrug to indicate her level of confusion.

"Maybe because he had something different planned," Freddie's voice sounded, pulling our attentions to him, and then to the former portal where his gaze was directed.

On the wall was a map. "Looks like we have to go there," Carly muttered, seemingly not quite sure what emotion she should be feeling.

I nodded. "Shane, you think you can sketch that?"

"I can engrave it into the back of my shield, but I kinda need a writing utensil or something," he called back.

"Here, let me," Gibby said as he stepped closer. "I'll do it with my fire magic."

Soon we had our map. "Okay, now we've gotta get back to the Gummi ship," I called to the group. The ground suddenly shook with more intensity as if to emphasize the urgency of the situation. "Now!" I shouted.

"Will we all fit?!" Gibby yelled back, panicked.

"Who cares?!" I ask beginning to feel the tension of the moment. "We'll figure it out when we get there! Worse comes to worse, we'll just tie you to the roof!"

I notice as we all run outside that it takes a little while longer for Gibby's footsteps to join ours. I probably scared the shirtless dweeb…Heh-heh.

Now, the upside of what happens next is that we didn't need to take any lifts to get down. The downside is the reason behind that.

As we got onto the ledge, the ground that held it to the peak of the castle shattered. Really, it _shattered_. And we began our quicker-than-we-expected descent down.

Screaming, we all tried to find someway to hold on, but ultimately we didn't need to, because by the time we slid off the falling piece of flooring, we made it exactly onto the crystal platform where the Gummi ship lay. Now the only challenge resting ahead of us was getting inside and to the air before the former ledge could flip over and crush us.

As we ran inside, Freddie pushed and shoved his way to the steering wheel as he shouted, "Move, move, move!"

What followed was a not-gentle but successful take-off. I didn't even care, though. All that mattered was that we didn't die.

Whoever said video games were indicative of a person's actual coordination was _lying_. Because no matter how good a pilot he was when he played Galaxy Wars or whatever, Freddie was _not_ a driver I'd chose for our next voyage. I even began dreading the thought of my up-until-now seemingly levelheaded boyfriend—boy, did it feel strange saying that—getting his drivers license.

Shane read off directions from the map that was melted into his shield, and when Gibby complained of nausea, Freddie was quick to pass the blame onto him. Shane let it roll off his back, though. It was clear Freddie had inherited his style of driving from his insane mother.

A grin overtook my face as I thought of Mrs. Benson and while the yelling and peaceful talking and moaning went on at the front of the ship, Carly and I sat in the back in an attempt to catch up. Well, per se.

"So, how did you make it out of the darkness?" Carly asked attentively as she took a sip of the hot cocoa she'd made during the flight—this thing really _did_ have everything.

I lifted my own mug to my lips and blew on my steaming drink before I answered. "Well, I almost didn't. But then I saw a light…and I went towards it."

Carly laughed. "Wow, nice way to rip-off every dramatic near-death scene from every movie ever made, Sam," she said playfully.

I laughed, too. "I know, right?" I smiled. "But the weird thing is, then I heard Freddie's voice. I heard him telling me that he loved me and begging me not to go. And then, I was back."

Carly was amazed. "Wow," she said lowly and then grinned. "I knew you liked him."

My mouth curved into some strange smile it had never formed before. "More than," I whispered out coyly.

Carly's grin transformed into a warm smile and she reached out to comfortingly rub my arm. "I'm happy for you, Sam," she said genuinely. "You really have come a long way, you know?"

I scoffed. "You have no idea."

A few minutes later, we landed. But as we stepped out of the Gummi ship and observed our surroundings, we realized we were on what one would assume the top of an aurora borealis would look like—only a lot darker and emptier.

Taking a simultaneous step forward, we all fell through what we previously thought was solid ground and landed on a light grey ledge a few yards down.

Groaning, we stood. And I looked over the side to see a light shining from way deep down, beckoning me to jump—or rather, fall to it.

Gibby finally spoke the words I had thought: "I think we have to jump," he gulped.

"You're nuts!" I shouted back. "I've done a lot of things through this journey, but I ain't jumpin' down there!"

Carly frowned, her eyebrows furrowing. "We're almost home, Sam," she paused. "Come on. I'm sure you can do it."

I just shook my head furiously. "No. No _way_."

"Come on, Sam." Freddie was suddenly on my left side and he gripped my hand, lacing his fingers between mine. "We'll go together."

Gulping, myself, now, Carly grasped my other hand and nodded in reassurance.

I kept my eyes in her direction as she and Shane joined hands.

Then I looked to Freddie's side where Gibby had possession of his other palm. Staring into my eyes, Freddie nodded and said, "You can do this—I know you can."

Taking a deep breath I looked ahead of me. I spoke lowly—seriously. "On the count of three." But at that second my throat closed, and I couldn't bring myself to count off.

Freddie noticed. "One!" he shouted, bravely, squeezing my hand tighter.

"Two!" Carly yelled, her own body jolting slightly at the tenacity of her tone.

Taking a deep breath, I thought back to my visit to Principal Franklin's hut, and the segment of the poem, "Stopping By Woods On a Snowy Evening," that he had recited to me.

"_And miles to go before I sleep, and miles to go before I sleep."_

"Three!" I shouted with all my being. And then we leapt together from the cliff.

We fell quickly, hands still-linked, towards the light. And then we crashed right into the ground in front of my and Carly's lockers. In the halls of Ridgeway High.

--

**AN: Squee! So exciting! There isn't really much to say about this one except that I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it, because boy, was this one really fun to write! Not even just the kiss (though that was great to write—didn't think I would pull it off as nicely as I did) but the chapter in general. It was all just really cool for me! We're getting close to the end, you guys! Hang in there! Anyway, I can't wait to hear your feedback on this one. Thank you for all your reviews so far! They're truly what's gotten me this far, and I really want to give each and every one of you a big hug! XD Seriously. But yeah =) Hopefully, I'll be able to work on Chapter 18 soon, but school's staring up for me again, so…I'll try. You'll know it's coming when you get your replies to your reviews, my lovely readers! ;D So, 'til next time!**

**P.S. Random thought…why hasn't anyone made a Seddie video with the song "Won't Say I'm In Love" from Hercules…?**

**-Fictions**


	18. Chapter 18

Summary: When Carly, Sam, and Freddie buy a new video game from a shady shop, just how crazy will things get when they try to play it?

Disclaimer: We're up to Chapter 18 and I STILL don't own iCarly or Kingdom Hearts and Dan Schneider and Tetsuya Nomaru still DO.

iFight For the Light: Chapter 18

We all stand in a chorus of moans and groans. We're all rubbing at our sides, as if that will make the pain from the fall go away. And as I turn to look above me—to try to see just how far we fell—I realize I can't, because all that's over our heads is the normal blank and bland ceiling of Ridgeway High.

"Hey there, kiddo."

I turn my head back down to normal level. I notice everyone else does, too—we're all thinking and doing the same things in our little confused daze. Confusion really _is_ universal.

In front of us is Rodney, in his attire from the game world, but the old, familiar atmosphere that surrounds him makes him just blend in—as if he belongs, just as he is. He elbows my locker while keeping his eyes and mischievous grin on us. My locker pops open, but it's not filled with stuff it usually is. Instead, there's a hoard of different colored potions that fills up the perimeter. "Pick your poison," Rodney says.

"Well," I begin, wondering how exactly I should approach this situation. "What does each one of them do?"

"Sorry, I can't tell you that," he says, shaking his head. "You've gotta pick on your own."

My eyebrows went oblique with puzzlement. "Rodney, what are you doing here? What's all that stuff doing in my locker? How did we get here? Why is no one _else_ here?"

I waited for Rodney to say something—anything to my stream of questions, but he gave no response. He just pursed his lips and waited for me to answer his previous request.

I frowned. "Why aren't you answering me?" I asked.

"Pick a bottle, kid," he said, giving me a nod of his head to encourage me.

I hesitated. I didn't really want to answer any questions without knowing what was going on first. This could be a trap for all we knew.

A huff came from behind me and suddenly Freddie took my hand again. He rubs his thumb on mine in an attempt to comfort me. I heard a slight squeal of content from Carly, but nothing above a whisper. Everyone seemed to understand that this was my choice to make.

I sighed deeply. My eyes were focused on the purple bottle off to the side, but I wasn't exactly certain that that was the one I should—

"Pick the green one!" Gibby calls, suddenly interrupting my thoughts.

We all turn to him, every one of us wearing a different expression of displeasure.

Gibby shrinks back, looking intimidated and shrugs. "I like the color green, what?"

Rolling my eyes, I turn back around.

Carly taps me on the shoulder. "I don't know about you, but that purple one's got me _drawn_ to it."

As I glance at her face, I see that she isn't even looking at me—her eyes are glued to the bottle.

Freddie nods. "Yeah, same thing for me."

Anxiety wells up in my throat and slowly, I say, "Then I guess that's what we're going with—the purple one."

Rodney grins again. "Good choice," he says as he tosses me the potion bottle. "That one heals your whole party. But all the other bottles are filled with poison."

Leisurely, I turn around to look at Gibby. My face is neutral as my perturbed voice states, "You could've killed us."

Gibby's silent as he gulps, his eyes darting around nervously. "What?! It's not like you took my advice!"

I nod. "And now you can never ask me again why I don't."

"Hey," Rodney says, making us turn around. He's walked to Freddie's locker, and gently pulls it open. "Time for you guys to hit your next area." He points inside the locker.

I raise an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"

"Through here," Rodney points again. "Come on—you don't have all day."

I face Gibby again. "As the guy who could've gotten us killed, you have the liberty of going first."

"I _really_ don't think we're all gonna fi—"

"Move!" I roared at him.

"Okay!" Gibby yells, his voice shaking as he quickly marches to the locker.

I may be a changed person, but I still know how to make people move their butts when we're constricted for time.

Gibby gets into a crawling position and shuffles, whimpering, into the locker. To my surprise he fits. And when I lean down to see my shirtless teammate, I discover he's gone. "Rodney, where did he--?"

Before I can finish asking, I receive a sharp shove to the back and I fly into the locker. I'm astonished to find myself falling out of the closet in Principal Franklin's office a second later.

Principal Franklin turns in his swivel chair to see me. He's still wearing his magician's robe and hat, but his smile is the same in any universe. "Sam," he beams as the rest of my teammates fall out of the doorway. "Good of you to come."

Confusedly, we all shuffle to the middle of the room. My heart's still pounding from the adrenaline our arrival to the new room left me with.

"Now," Principal Franklin begins, folding his hands on his desk. "Choose a weapon."

I shake my head. "What?" I ask as my eyebrows furrow. This really is all too weird.

He extends a hand and motions behind us. As I turn around, I see a floating sword, shield, and staff.

I know that before I went through this journey, there'd be no hesitation for me and I'd go straight to the sword. Swords are cool—they're strong, violent, and destructive. But since all I've been through, I've learned to value much more than chaos. I've learned to value the lives of those around me, and have become protective of them as well. Sure I was protective before, but mainly only of Carly, and very rarely of Freddie. But now, everything's different. So that's why, with a nod, I choose the shield.

Ted smiles. "The shield—protection. It gives you the ability to protect yourself _and _others. The true weapon of friendship, indeed." Rolling over on his chair, he grips the side of his desk and opens it, like a door.

I walk over to get a better look. Inside there's nothing but black emptiness.

"Time to head off to your next destination."

My eyebrows knit together. "Where are we going, Principal Franklin?" I ask.

He grins, and there's a twinkle in his eyes. "You'll see when you get there." Ted motions with his hand that we should go through.

I trust Principal Franklin—he's just that kind of guy you know doesn't lie. Sighing, I crawl inside and I push away a curtain—

Only to discover I was under a table in the Cheesecake Warehouse. Shannon giggles from the table she's sitting at as the rest of us come crawling through. "Please, sit with me," she requests, serenely, gesturing to the five chairs in front of her at the circular table.

This area, like all the others so far, is oddly unpopulated. Shannon sits alone in her pink outfit and bow with only plates of cheesecake in front of her to keep her company. Yet there's no sign of any chefs or waiters or anyone to prepare or _serve_ said cheesecake.

Warily, after turning behind me to see what everyone else thought of the situation, I take a seat, directly facing Shannon at the table.

It's weird—my friends seem to be acting less like themselves and more of zombie-ish clones of me—like I'm their puppet master or something. I understand everything that's been happening now has been my choice and my choice alone, but it'd be nice to know I have actual _people_ beside me instead of five distorted mirrors.

Shannon smiles warmly in an attempt to probably dismiss my fears—it's not exactly successful.

Seeing my expression hasn't relaxed at all, Shannon's face takes up a sad quality to it. "Sam, what do you value most in life?" she asks me flat-out.

I blink startled by how up-front she is. "What?"

She giggles. "What do you care about most?"

This is one of the only aspects of mine that hasn't changed from time I entered the game—except perhaps my feelings about it have grown stronger. "My friends and family," I answer with a nod.

"You sound so sure of yourself," Shannon tilts her head.

"Well, yeah, I _am_ sure of myself," I reply. "As long as you have people who care about you, and people you care about in return, you're never alone. And no matter how hard times will get, you'll always have people there to help you through them."

I turn to see that Freddie's broken the pattern of mirrored faces, and he's now staring back at mine with his comforting half-smile in place. I feel like biffing him in the head or something, just out of habit, but the half-smile is really uplifting—it makes me feel ready to take on anything; gives me a burst of energy.

Shannon nods. "Please, if you'd all take a bite of your cheesecake now? And close your eyes as well?"

We all stare at her in suspicion.

She giggles. "Oh no, there's nothing wrong with it. In fact, it's quite delicious."

Pursing my lips, I turn to try to get an opinion from my teammates. They all just shrug and wait for me to decide what to do. I sigh. It figures. Puppets can't move unless the puppeteer pulls their strings.

Lifting our forks to our mouths and clenching our eyes shut, we take a simultaneous bite.

…

And then I'm choking out what I chewed because Shannon lied—it tastes _horrible._ It's tart and creamy and…_crunchy_. Like it's been sitting for a few more years than it should of.

My eyes snap open as I gag, and I see we're now sitting on the bench in the lobby of Bushwell Plaza.

Mrs. Benson is sitting next to us, still in her ninja clothes, with a tray of cucumber cups in her hands. She laughs lightly and somberly. "I didn't really think you would like them all that much," she says as she places the tray off to the side.

My eyebrows furrow. What's with all these people I know popping up in their normal places…but still dressed as their game counterparts? This makes absolutely no sense. "Mrs. Benson," I pause trying to figure out the right way to word what I'm about to say, but eventually just go for the flat-out approach. "What are you doing here?" I ask.

Mrs. Benson stays quiet for a moment. It looks like she's biting her lip—as if there's something she wants to tell me but can't. Her sad eyes stare into mine as she places a mothering hand on mine that is resting on my knee. "Sweetie, what would you give up to protect the ones you love?"

My mouth freezes half-open, jaw clenched. My eyebrows are pulled together in perplexity. Why were all these people asking me questions? What did they have to do with anything? Why were they here? What was Mrs. Benson hiding from me? Regardless of all the questions stirring in my mind, the answer to Mrs. Benson's was really simple. "Everything," I said, sounding the surest I could ever be of anything, yet the confusion kept my mind swirling—and while my voice was certain, it was distant.

Mrs. Benson returns to chewing on her lip and nods almost hysterically. "Okay, dear," she said in her normal neurotic, rushed tone. Removing her hand from my knee, she raised her arm and pointed at the door just behind what I've always known as Lewbert's desk. "The next place you need to go is right through that door."

I shook my head in disgust. "I don't wanna go back there—that's Lewbert's secret room. Who knows _what_ or _who's_ in there?" I asked rhetorically.

Mrs. Benson laughs shakily. "Oh, sweetie, haven't you learned by now that doors don't always lead to the places you expect them to?"

I purse my lips and sigh as I look off at a spot on the floor as I muter almost solely to myself. "Well, there was Freddie's locker, Principal Franklin's closet and desk, then the table at the cheesecake factory and…even our eyes." I did my head-tilt as I looked back to her face. "But how would you know about any of that?"

Mrs. Benson shook her head. "I can't really tell you anymore, Sam, you've got to go through that door."

I looked back at Freddie and Carly for support. Shane and Gibby were already staring at each other in confusion, probably using team telepathy to voice their thoughts on the matter to one another.

Freddie gulps visibly, looking from the face that he recognizes at his mother to me, and then nods, almost unsurely.

Carly looks much more certain and levelheaded this time as she takes in a deep breath, as if pulling pure courage into her lungs and waggles her head slowly with certainty—she _knows _it's the thing we should do; knows it's the thing we _have_ to do. But the fact that she's levelheaded isn't surprising; Carly's always been the most sensible one out of us all.

Hesitantly, I turn back to Mrs. Benson with a nod. "Alright, Mrs. Benson," I said, standing. "Let's do this, guys."

Freddie, Carly, Gibby, and Shane all stand. And while they perform the motion in their own different ways, it still nags at me that the overall movement is the same. Sheesh! Someone say something! Someone stay sitting! Someone protest! Someone do _something_!

But they don't, and I let out a sigh that sounds more like a groan. I guess I'm just too tired to hide my true emotions. I push through Lewbert's creepy random door, and suddenly—

--We're in the Shay's apartment, exiting out of what I've always known as the door to Spencer's room. Now we head into the foyer.

Spencer, in his "Leon" clothes is standing near the kitchen, rubbing multi-color finger paint on a giant plaster sculpture of a pig. He doesn't even look up as he addresses us. "Good to see you guys decided to stop by."

I was looking around in pure confusion. I mean, this definitely _looked_ like Carly's house. And Spencer was definitely acting—maybe not talking, but acting—Spencer-ish. But then why would he still be wearing those strange clothes—the black plants, and the short-sleeved black jacket with the red emblem on the back; those clothes that were so obviously _not_ Spencer?

I didn't bother questioning, though. I knew no matter what, I would get no answer—all I'd hear was another question. The one that was most likely to crack and actually tell me what was going on was Mrs. Benson, but even she kept her mouth shut—though it definitely looked as if it took quite some effort to keep quiet.

Spencer finally spoke: "What do you want the most out of life, Sam?" he asked me, still with his eyes on the plaster hog in front of him as he quickly rushed around, trying to cover every inch of it in paint.

This question wasn't easy. There were still many things I wanted. Some things were trivial, like a good meal—preferably of bacon—but others were serious; others were issues of me wanting to go home, and me wanting to be able to know why we were sucked into the game in the first place. I shook my head. "Can you give me some choices to pick from or something?"

"There are no pre-made choices in this one, Sam," Spencer replied as he quickly brushed blue paint over the pig's ears with his fingers. "This is all you."

Taking a deep breath, my gaze darted around the area. I decided, finally, as I closed my eyes—shakily, nervously—that I'd simply let my heart speak for itself; let the words flow out of me truthfully and naturally as they should. "To make my friends proud of me." The words rolled off my tongue, as if I had rehearsed my answer beforehand. "To make my_self_ proud of me."

When I opened my eyes, Spencer was standing up straight, facing us. He had a mysterious smile stretched across his face as he lifted his hand and held out his palm towards the front door. "Go on, Sam. It's the last door you have to go through."

My face went completely blank as a sense of finality coursed through me. This was it. This was the end? My heart began to pound in my chest. It was then that I had wished I were the one of my group closest to the door, instead of furthest from it as I was. I wanted to wait—I needed time to catch my breath; needed time to catch myself before I stepped through that one last door. But as I turned around I saw Gibby—who had previously been trailing the group—open the door and step through.

And so, as I gulped, I followed my friends through the final doorway.

Suddenly, we found ourselves in the iCarly studio. I didn't close the glass door when I walked in; this all seemed too surreal—too strange—to function right now.

No one was waiting for us in this room. And again, the rest of my group turned around to face me in question as if I knew the answer—the reason why the studio was empty.

I shrugged with enthusiasm. At that moment, the door creaked and swung shut. I turned to see who had pushed the door, being that the rest of the room's inhabitants were standing in front of me, far from the door. I was unexpectedly faced with Nevel who smirked evilly, his eyes shimmering with excitement as he stalked slowly and hauntingly towards me. I couldn't move—I was frozen, though I didn't know why. And for some reason, no one moved to help me. "What is your greatest fear, Sam Puckett?" he asked, his voice so loud it was near hysterical as if he wasn't able to contain his thrill.

And suddenly, he reached and shoved me. And I fell back over the cart that held Freddie's tech equipment and laptop. My friends' cries of concern echoed through my ears as I fell in slow motion, my eyes closing instinctively as if it would lessen the pain from the floor on which I was to soon hit.

But what I hit_ wasn't_ floor. It was sand. And I jumped to my feet immediately, and brushed myself off as I examined my surroundings.

I was back on the Destiny Islands. Only a few things were different. The island was empty now. And the wind bustled harshly, ominously. The water was no longer there, and all that rested in front of me was a gaping hole of nothingness.

I quickly moved back in fear that the wind could push me off. I wondered why I had begun to feel so timid and fragile. When I looked up, I saw that the bridge that led to the platform from which Freddie disappeared—the one that held the burning palm tree that illuminated his dark and empty face—had vanished. And then, as my eyes were glued to the spot, the platform _itself _faded out of existence.

There was a distinct feeling that something was going to jump out at me at any moment. And as I looked around, cautiously, beginning to walk across the crumbling once-beautiful island, I took notice of the fact that my keyblade, along with my allies, was gone. My outfit was different, too—it had switched back to the one I wore back in the real world; the one I wore in the place where I was merely Sam; where I was only a girl with barely passing grades, surrounded by people who expected nothing more from me but trouble.

I was completely back to normal.

And it was only now that I realized just how horrible "normal" felt.

--

**AN: Chapter 18: done and done-er =D More's a comin'! As always, don't mind the time it takes for me to churn out more—stupid school. I really can't wait to write more. I hope this chapter wasn't boring for any of you. Understand that it is very important. Wonder if anyone'll be able to place the scene in the story that this chapter sort of mirrors =) Thank you again for all of your reviews! Cannot wait to see your feedback! I appreciate everyone who has stuck with me and has been reading (and reviewing) this whole time, and everyone who jumped onto the bandwagon on the way! Thanks so much!! This story is dedicated to you all!**

**-Fictions**


	19. Chapter 19

Summary: When Carly, Sam, and Freddie buy a new video game from a shady shop, just how crazy will things get when they try to play it?

Disclaimer: Oh my gosh, guess what?! I own these fandoms now! …No, Early April Fools. I don't own iCarly and Kingdom Hearts—Dan Schneider and Tetsuya Nomaru do.

iFight For the Light: Chapter 19

As I was walking cautiously through the shattered island, I spun around every time I felt the cruel and bitter wind blow.

The idea may seem silly to you, but the motion actually proved its worth upon one particular gust of wind. At that breeze, I jumped about to see Nevel. And I was just barely able to dodge the swing of his shadow blade he cast towards me. (The blade wasn't a keyblade, but that would hardly stop it from being harmful.)

"What is your greatest fear, Sam Puckett?" he repeated his words from before as he swung for me again.

I kept my mouth shut, just trying to dodge his swings. I had no weapon, and for some reason being back in my normal clothes—my orange thermal, indigo/silver vest jacket, and of course, plaid capris—made me feel weaker.

Sand rustled through my converse as I shakily weaved around Nevel's swings, all the while being forced backward toward the gaping hole that seemed to be the end of the world.

As Nevel rushed me, he just kept repeating the same question in the same tone of voice. And with each swing, he got closer and closer to me. At this point, I didn't know what would kill me first—Nevel's sword, or the eternal drop into nothingness.

He's not backing off and I'm not answering. The one thing that's most certain right now is that I _am_ going to die. It was just a matter of by what means.

I continue to stumble backwards, my face growing more tightened in frustration as Nevel continued his attack, still repeating the same question over and over again. But as I stepped closer to the end of the world, it wasn't just Nevel's voice I heard asking me. I heard Carly's voice, and Freddie's voice, and Mrs. Benson's voice, and Principal Franklin's voice, and Gibby, and Shane's, and my own mother's. And my own.

And then there it was. The answer. Something I should've known all along. "To lose everything I care about!" I shouted, causing Nevel to almost stumble in his repeated lunging motion. "To lose Freddie, to lose Carly, to lose Spencer, to lose my mom." My voice was tinged with shame when I spoke that last one. It was upsetting and sad just how little I thought about her—in this one where she was nowhere to be found, or in the real world where she was right in front of me. Placing my hands to my heart as I skipped over Nevel's slicing blade, I continued. "My memories," I shook my head. "To lose everyone I hold in my heart! That's my greatest fear!"

Nevel snickers and unleashes a vicious grin. "Foolish girl," his head goes from side-to-side. "They're already gone!" he shouts. "They never _really_ cared about you. All they wanted was for you to save their precious little world. And now that you've proved that to be a goal with no merit whatsoever, they gave up. You've already lost all you cared about, and all you cared about was merely a lie!"

"No! Not Freddie and Carly! They—"

"Oh!" he snickers and bursts into laughter. "Carly? _Freddie_? Carly only stays with you because she feels _sorry_ for you. Because there's no other way for you to gain friends other than hanging out with her."

Even though I knew deep in my gut that he was wrong, tears still brimmed my lashes.

"And Freddie?" he laughed again. "He only stayed with you because it's the only way to get close to Carly."

"You're wrong," I barely more than whispered. "He told me he loved me."

"He _lied_. I mean, honestly, how else would you have lived to save his and his precious Carly's existence?"

I fought off the urge to crumple from the pain as the idea of being betrayed by my best friends shot through me. It felt as if I had been shot straight through the heart. "You're wrong!" I shouted.

"Am I?" Nevel asks. "Is that why you're being crushed by the weight of your own heavy sorrow-laden heart? Because you know without a doubt that I'm lying to you?"

I lifted my face heavenward as I struggled to hold back a wail. But that's when the words that were being screamed through my mind by the voices of my friends and family twisted—changed. They were no longer questioning my fear, but begging me to let them in—begging me to let them help me. My breath returned to me—my strength, everything. And even though I was just normal old Sam in my normal old clothes, I was still the changed Sam—still the powerful Sam that nothing could ever topple over. "You _are_ wrong," I say as I began to feel myself shine.

"_What_?" Nevel asks in shock.

"They do care! Otherwise I wouldn't be able to hear them now!" I brought my face back to him. "And I wouldn't be able to do this."

Nevel's face grew outraged as he swung for me. I didn't bother to move. The blade hit into my side, but I was left without even a bump. Nevel was thrown backwards, and as if that hit was some magical key in of its own, my friends appeared around me in shimmering light. All of them—Freddie in his normal old plaid, Gibby and Principal Franklin in suits, Shane in a normal t-shirt and jeans, Carly in a penny tee and pink pants, Mrs. Benson in a sweater and slacks, Rodney in his normal trench coat, Shannon in her floral miniskirt and denim jacket, and finally Spencer, in a thermal (covered by a t-shirt) and jeans.

Nevel's dark blade disappeared on the ground as he crawled backwards in fear. He crab-walked across the sand, eyes wide in shock. "Darkness," he seemed to whisper. "Kingdom Hearts! Help me!"

"_You're_ the fool, Nevel!" I boomed. "Kingdom Hearts isn't darkness—it's _light_! Pure light!" I beamed. "It's _this_," I said motioning to my friends all around me. "But if you want it," a grin found its way to my face. "Then why don't you see how it feels?!"

Nevel protested shrilly as we all ran towards him. We had no weapons—only light; only each other. But that was enough. As we made our way to him, he tried to fight back. He tried to lunge at us or strike. But whether our response was to punch, or kick, or dodge, it only made us shine brighter.

Throwing myself back to evade, I put my hands out to brace my fall. And once my palms were more-or-less secure and firmly resting on the sand, I pushed myself back up, kicking Nevel with my feet like a kangaroo and sent him back into the crowd of my shining allies. Letting out one last scream, in a great explosion of brightness, Nevel was gone.

And once we were able to see again—once I was able to lower my hand from my eyes, I saw that we were back in the grey world again—the one I had jumped from and into my memories.

The gang from Traverse Town surrounded me—still dressed in their clothes from the real world—and they all beamed. We were laughing and shouting in triumph. We were hugging and high-fiving and just completely rejoicing.

Turning around, I saw that a few yards from me, waving, stood Carly, Freddie, Gibby, and Shane. Smiling somberly back to the group behind me, I let my expression speak the words that my voice could not.

A hand touched my shoulder, lightly, and I instantly looked to Mrs. Benson. She shared the same smile that I wore. "Go on, honey," she said while nodding slowly, sadly. Her tone, though gloomy and sweet was fully approving. And the smile that didn't quite reach my eyes stretched a bit further.

I nodded once in affirmation as I took off into a run towards my other old friends. During my stride, I turned around to thank the group for all they had done for me, only to discover that they were gone. A pang of sadness shot through me at knowing that I would not be able to show my gratitude for their efforts, but I still turned and continued running—they were in my heart, they would know how grateful I was.

I surprised even myself as I ran past Carly and straight into Freddie's waiting arms.

Breathing heavily, I embraced him with all my might, and he wholly reciprocated as I pressed my face into his shoulder.

I felt Carly's smile on my back and felt Gibby and Shane's expressions of satisfaction and contentment as they stood just behind me.

"You did it, Sam," Freddie whispers into my hair. "You saved the worlds."

I laughed. "Couldn't have done it without you, dork." And I mean it. I mean it with all my heart—with all my being. I know that for sure now. He holds me tighter, laying a gentle kiss on my forehead.

But suddenly, the world rumbles, and the ground cracks under our feet. We're wrenched apart, separated by some invisible force field. "What?" I ask silently in confusion after groaning and regaining my composure. Freddie's just standing there as the ground begins to break apart and separate into two plains—one that contains Carly, Gibby, Shane and I, and the other with Freddie alone. I run to him, but am again thrown back by the unseen wall that has appeared. "Freddie!" I cry out as I land in Carly's arms.

She's looking back and forth worriedly, but staying quiet, trying to not add to my confusion, frustration, and pain.

We're drifting further apart, and hastily I call back, "Jump across, Freddie! Come on!"

I struggle against Carly's arms as she holds me back. I want to run and jump to him. Even if I don't make it, at least I'll have tried. Let _go_, Carls, I think as I groan and writhe.

Freddie numbly shakes his head. "I can't," he mutters, but for some reason, his voice is still able to reach me as if he's shouting. "I gave into the darkness, Sam. I have to stay here. It's the consequence I face for my stupidity."

I'm still. My face goes blank, hot tears coursing from my wide eyes across my fatigued and dried out cheeks. Then, I'm thrashing harder than ever, screaming, "No!" at the top of my lungs as if I'm being tortured. I break free from Carly's grasp and run to the edge of the platform.

"Sam!" she calls and quickly grabs me back. "Please, no," she says as calmly as she can as some of her own tears hit the exposed back of my neck. "You have to let him go, Sam." She sounds as if she's about to breakdown—as if those words were something she never ever wanted to have to say. And now that she did, her heart was breaking with them.

"Sam," Freddie calls, a smile in his voice. He calls my name as if he just caught me in some random act of foolishness and was now gently, teasingly chiding me for it. "I'll be back. I promise," he beams genuinely.

A sob breaks past all my barriers of defense I had put up. Not after all this—he can't be leaving again. He can't. I can't do this anymore. I can't take it.

"Just…" he pauses, and my eyes raise to him again. "Do me a favor…and…" Suddenly, his face looks pained. As if he's broken and he himself has crumbled. His voice is no longer cheerful, but pleading and near hopeless. "Please let this work," it looks as if he whispers. And then he shouts, "Please wake up, Sam! Please!"

Confusion tainted the sadness that ran throughout my being. I looked to my sides. Gibby and Shane were gone. They had disappeared.

I realize that I'm standing straight now. The perplexity seems to have ceased my struggling, but my tears still fall. Carly calls to me, her voice right next to my ear now as she pleads, "All you need to do is wake up, Sam." She gives my arm a gentle squeeze. "Wake up."

My face lifted again to where Freddie stood. But all I saw was his shape slowly fading from view. "No!" I cried, shaking my head in denial as my legs fully gave out on me. And I fell to my knees on the moving platform we were on.

Carly pleads again. "Wake up. Sam," she shakes me—her voice and face becoming more distressed. "Wake up!" her voice grows louder, but echoed as my vision begins to blur and darken. My tears do not cease as Carly calls louder and louder. I can no longer see her or anything else around me, but the last thing I hear before my ears stop working is a final plea, said in a multitude of voices. And then, the voices are replaced with the Traverse Town bell.

The ringing gets louder as I tried to let what's just happened sink into my mind.

And louder as I try to figure out what's happening at this second.

And louder, 'til my thoughts are completely disrupted, and I groan in annoyance as I try to place my hands over my ears.

There's something bumpy and cold over them, and I angrily grab whatever the substance is, baring my teeth and throw it from my head. The loud crash and sudden yelping of surprise causes my eyes to flash open.

I'm in the iCarly studio. And Carly automatically launches herself and wraps her arms around me. "Thank god you're alright," she whispers.

Spencer's jumping around behind her in a fit of joy yelling, "I did it! I did it!" over and over again.

I pat Carly awkwardly on the back. "What's going on?" I blink in confusion. "Are we still rolling?"

Carly looked perplexed. (Spencer's still jumping around and running back and forth in the background.) "No. We stopped a while ago. You've been asleep for hours," she says as she shakes her head.

I scoff. "No, I haven't. We got sucked inside the game, remember?"

Carly pauses. "No," she answers sadly. "Sam, you must've fallen asleep when you were answering questions at the beginning of the game. We stopped filming, then. No matter what we did," she paused again, a lump seemingly having formed in her throat. "You wouldn't wake up. We were really scared, Sam."

I'm still a little confused and I scrunch my hair as I rub the back of me head, but I guess that makes sense. Considering the big "wakeup" back there. But that meant that _everything_ was just a dream? None of it was real?

No, some of it was real. What I was feeling—what I had realized, that _was_ real. And I found my eyes searching the room for a missing tech nerd.

"Doesn't look like everyone was so concerned," I grumbled. Freddie was nowhere to be found.

Carly scoffs humorlessly. "Are you kidding?" she asks, pulling my attention back to her. "Sam, he stayed by your side the entire time. He wouldn't leave. Even while Spencer was building this thing." She kicked the machine that had the headphones I threw attached to it lightly. "He only went home about a half-an-hour ago because his mom made him."

My voice sounded way more disappointed than I wanted it to be. "Why didn't he just tell the nut what was going on, then?" I asked, my gaze on a spot on the floor.

Carly shook her head. "You know she would've called the hospital. She would've completely flipped out. And Spencer wanted to use his machine." She glared. "Even though that was pretty stupid. " Now she seemed to be speaking more to Spencer than to me. "It was a serious matter and he was taking so long, _I _was about to call 911. I told him that this would be his last chance, and then I was phoning for an ambulance."

"But it worked!" Spencer grinned ecstatically, and fell to the floor, hugging the little machine. "I'm so proud!" he called as the sound of mock tears filled his voice.

I pursed my lips. It was a genuine reason, all right. I guess I couldn't blame Freddie, although I couldn't help being a little disappointed. Especially after all I'd been though. Frowning, I corrected myself mentally. I hadn't been through any of that; I'd merely dreamt it. "So, what is that thing?" I asked, my hands in my pockets, gesturing with a nod of my head towards the machine Spencer had collapsed upon.

Spencer jumped up like a firecracker. "This is a machine that can create the loudest frequency of sound that man is capable of perceiving! I made it—" he paused for dramatic effect. "—To wake you up. And it _worked_!" he beamed, laughing with full cheer as he rubbed his hands together in excitement.

"Yeah," Carly rolled her eyes, a hand on the right hip that she leaned on in annoyance. "After about three failed attempts." Three times—the same number of times that I had gone "unconscious" during my dream. So _that_ was what the ringing was. It _wasn't_ the bell from Traverse Town.

Spencer turned to her, looking down and called in a rushed voice, "Butitworkedandthat'sallthatmatters!"

Rolling her eyes a second time, a sad smile appeared on Carly's face and she sighed, crossing her arms over her chest.

But as they were engaged in their normal brother and sister ramble, I was thinking back to my dream. Sure, the fights weren't real, and maybe his feelings for me weren't real…but my feelings _were_. My walls of memory truly did exist in my heart and mind. And they were still painted with memories of him. I had to see him—just to remind myself that he himself was real.

"…_He stayed by your side the entire time. He wouldn't leave."_

My face softened, and my eyebrows dropped as my hands unconsciously moved to my heart. He did at least care. I had to let him know I was okay. Quickly, I stood and rushed to the door.

"Where are you going?" Carly asked hurriedly in concern.

I didn't answer her question. All I said was, "I'll be right back." And then I flew down the stairs.

Glancing at the clock I saw that it was just about 2 AM. But that didn't matter. I had a lock to pick and a dork to see.

--

**AN: Oh, I hope that was good x.x And I really hope no one was disappointed from this. Stick with me, please, and trust me! I have two more chapters left to write now, but I promise they'll be worth your while. –Nervous to hear everyone's responses to this-. I'm preparing myself to dodge brick. –Sigh- That's about it for now. I'll work as quickly as I can on the next chapter. Until then…**

**PS. Throughout the story, there are hints as to the whole journey being a dream. Can you guys find any? ;D If you can't, don't worry. They'll mostly all be listed in the Author's Note in the next chapter, but I'd like to see what you can come up with! Some are more obvious than others.**

**PPS. Expect the next chapter to be uploaded on the day of Nickelodeon's Crush Night!**

**-Fictions**


	20. Chapter 20

Summary: When Carly, Sam, and Freddie buy a new video game from a shady shop, just how crazy will things get when they try to play it?

Disclaimer: Whoever STILL doesn't understand that Dan Schneider owns iCarly and Tetsuya Nomaru owns Kingdom Hearts, leave now. RIGHT now. Before you get a boot to the head.

iFight For the Light: Chapter 20

Getting into the Benson's apartment was simple. Years of practice picking locks—and Freddie's lock specifically a few times—helped me with that.

Once inside, I used stealth to climb up the stairs of the loft to the room I knew had to be Freddie's—the door had a sign on it that said, "Hackers, keep out." If that's not a clue, I don't know what is.

When I lightly opened the door and stepped inside, I saw Freddie, sitting awake in his bed with his arms behind his head. Once he spotted me, he sat up slowly, eyebrows furrowed in perplexity. "Sam?" he asked as he wearily rubbed his eyes. A tired little open-mouthed half-smile found its way to his face. "Sam," he said in recognition. "You're awake."

I shot a half-smile of my own back at him, and waved slightly.

Freddie's face regained the confusion it held from before and he looked around. "But how did you get in--?"

Catching him mid-question, I lifted the bobby pin I had used to open the door with a silent grin.

"Oh," was all he said in response.

Quietly, my shoes not even shuffling on the floor as I walked, I took a seat at the foot of his bed. "So," I said after a moment passed. "I heard you stayed with me for pretty much the entire time while I was asleep."

Freddie's face fell. "I was really worried about you…" he says in an almost whispered tone, his gaze averted from mine.

"Worried about _me_?" I scoff.

"Yeah," he said as if it were obvious, his head shooting up as he spoke. "Sam, I tried everything I knew to wake you up. Even stuff from fairytales, like—"

He had caught himself mid-sentence and gulped. My fingers slid unconsciously to my lips. That was the reason it had felt more real than anything else in the dream—because that part really _did_ happen. Freddie had tried to wake me up by means of a kiss.

In a forced voice, he speaks again. "I felt responsible, Sam. I thought I killed you or something. Well, no," he fiddles with his hands. "I mean, I knew you were _just_ unconscious. But that was a big deal! I felt—" he exhales a pained breath. "I felt horrible." Freddie groans in anger. "Why did I even get that stupid game? I should've known better!"

"Dude, relax," I laughed lightly. "I'm fine now," I said, motioning up and down over myself with my hand. "See?" And it was true—on the outside, I was perfectly fine. The only place I was wounded was on the inside with the remembrance of all we were in fantasy. And the realization of what we would never be in reality.

"I'm sorry," Freddie says after awhile of sighing in silence. "I know you really wanted to play the game—I'll order you a legit copy off the Internet. You don't have to pay me for it at all. You don't have to pay me for _anything_ ever again."

I scoff as a somber smile reaches my lips. "Be careful what you say, Freddo," I flash him my teeth. "I might hold you to it." But then I'm shaking my head. "That's okay, though. I think I've had just about enough of Kingdom Hearts as it is."

"Oh," he answers again, and then shrugs. "Well, if you're sure. The offer's still there."

I'm silent for a while; my eyes have drifted to the window. The light shining through from the street lamp makes it look as if the moon is hovering right outside. Crazy dork sleeps with the shades open—I could never do that. I need complete darkness to sleep peacefully. Ironic, isn't it? But my thoughts wander while my gaze is away from his, and I slowly speak in a distant tone. "At the end of the game, everyone separates." I turn back to him but my voice is still soft when I ask, "Right?"

Freddie's looking confused again but he nods. "Right. But…" he pauses, using my head-tilt. "I thought you never played the game before."

I don't acknowledge the last part of his speech. "Do they ever see each other again?" I ask as a lump rises in my throat. I'm afraid of what answer I'll get—not that it still even applies to me, but it feels as if it does.

His voice matches mine as he tries to reach my stare. "Yeah," he nods gently. "Near the end of the second game."

A small somber smile stretches on my face. "I'm glad," I say, doing my best work ever to keep my voice steady. I can almost feel it weaving around the lump in my throat, cautiously. An unexpected tear courses down my face, and I'm suddenly glad we're almost in complete darkness. Sure Freddie saw me cry in the dream world, but in reality that was a totally different story. There was no way I was letting him see me—

"Hey, Sam, are you okay?" Freddie asks worriedly as he sits up fully from leaning on his headboard.

Stupid lamppost, betraying me like that. "I'm fine." The words catch on the lump in my throat, causing my voice to shake as it journeys out from my lips. I try to turn my head away but Freddie just scoots closer.

He glares in scrutiny and runs a finger across my cheek. "No, you're crying," he says matter-of-factly.

I don't say anything. There aren't any words meant for this moment—at least, not any I can think of.

Freddie's face turns saddened and worried. "Sam, what's wrong?" he asks with genuine concern, his eyes searching my face, awaiting my gaze to reach his.

With a slight gulp, I gingerly closed my eyes, allowing my heart to say the words that I couldn't force out myself. "Freddie, promise you'll never leave."

"What?" he asks in surprise.

My eyes flash open and I turn so that they can meet his wide, shocked gaze. "Promise you'll never go away," I say with a nod as more tears begin to course down my face—tears I can't control, but eagerly try to wipe away with my sleeves.

Reaching behind him, Freddie grabs a tissue from the box on his bed. When he turns to me again, he raises one hand and lowers my arms from my face, pressing the tissue to my cheeks lightly with the other. He and I both freeze in the moment, and quietly, he whispers out, "I promise. I won't go away unless you tell me to and you really mean it."

We're trapped in each other's eyes, none of us moving. "No," I say, slightly louder with a delicate shake of my head. "Not even if I tell you to. You know how I get—I just _say_ things sometimes. So even if I get angry, just don't go." I'm silent and I purse my lips. "Okay?"

Freddie's eyes are wandering all over my face, and maybe it's the sleep that's doing it to him, but he's slumped forward, so now he's even closer to me as he shakes his head and says, "Then I never will." Before I even realize what's happening, his lips connect with mine. And there's that feeling again, exactly as I dreamt it. I close my eyes, my brows knitting together in urgency. I need him to reciprocate; I need him to feel the same. It sounds pathetic, but I might just break if he doesn't.

But suddenly, he's kissing me back with just the same enthusiasm. The hand that was wiping the tears on my cheek suddenly spreads its fingers there, keeping me steady, while his other arm wraps around my back.

And behind my closed eyes, I saw what I swore were fireworks—or perhaps just multi-colored blasts of magic.

The first kiss we shared was in a pact.

The second kiss we shared was in a dream.

The third kiss we shared was in a promise.

--

It was about 4 AM when I finally made it back to Carly's to spend the night. She and Spencer had left the door open for me and had set up the couch with some blankets for me to sleep with.

I changed into my pj's, not really knowing how I was going to fall asleep with so much energy running through me. That's when I remembered that I'd taken out props to use on iCarly for tonight. I never got to utilize them, but I might as well put them away if I needed something to do.

Grabbing the hats and noisemakers, I stepped into the huge supply closet that we used for all our iCarly equipment. I carefully stepped over the green screen that I had knocked over beforehand to put away the items in my arms. After I did, I stood up straight with a sigh. But before leaving the room, I felt something call to me. There was a spot of the room that stuck out in my mind for some reason, and gently moving the costumes out of the way, I saw what I knew had to be Freddie's shrine.

There were about ten stalker-style photos of Carly, all when she wasn't looking. A pain shot through my heart. Maybe the kiss was just a heat of the moment sort of thing. Maybe nothing had changed between Freddie and I at all.

But at that moment, I noticed the one tiny picture that brought a warm, glowing feeling throughout my entire being. It was a printed screenshot of the hug between Freddie and I at the iWeb Awards.

My face lit up with the foreign smile from my dreams and I scoffed, grinning widely.

Maybe the third time _was_ the charm after all.

--

**AN: Incredibly short chapter, I know. But I hope you all enjoyed. This isn't the end, you guys! An epilogue is coming up soon. I really hope you liked this and I can't wait to see your feedback.**

**As to the hints pointing towards the journey being a dream, there are quite a few—1. The fact that all the characters knew Sam's name without her telling them directly. 2. In Chapter 18, Spencer is painting a giant sculpture of a pig in the foyer. 3. Every time Sam tries or has the urge to sleep, something stops her. (This refers to the theory that if you fall asleep in a dream, you wake up in real life.) 4. Freddie and Sam's kiss in Chapter 17 felt more real than anything else because it really happened, whereas everything else, did not. 5. In Chapter 18, everyone seems to be acting as a mirror to Sam's actions, which annoys her, but goes back to the theory that every person in a dream is really just an embodiment of an aspect of the dreamer**

**Anyway, that's most of them! Let me know if you can spot some more!**

**PS. If you listen to the lyrics of The Fray's "Look After You," the verses sound very much like Sam's perspective of this scene—the choruses, however, strike me more as Freddie. **

**-Fictions**


	21. Epilogue

Summary: When Carly, Sam, and Freddie buy a new video game from a shady shop, just how crazy will things get when they try to play it?

Disclaimer: EPIC DISCLAIMER IS EPIC. But very short. I don't own iCarly or Kingdom Hearts. Dan Schneider and Tetsuya Nomaru do. How sad is it that I'm upset this is the last time I'll have to say that?

Well, without further ado--ladies and gentlemen, I present to you...

iFight For the Light: Epilogue

_Weeks later…_

I'm walking the halls of school alone. I made it here late—mom was trying to teach the cat how to drive. It wasn't working. But I'd called Carly and Freddie and told them I'd meet up with them at our English class.

Things are pretty much back to normal. Well, _mostly_. After that night, I'd constantly gone back to check up on Freddie's shrine. Slowly, Carly's awkward photos were disappearing and were being replaced by pictures of, sometimes all three of us together, but mainly ones of just Freddie and I, smiling and posing for the camera.

I'm not sure when exactly Freddie got over Carly, but I'm happy about it. In the end, everyone won. Carly gets to live in peace, and Freddie and I are perfectly happy together. There's no awkwardness lingering between Carly and Freddie whenever they hug now, and Spencer and Carly often cheer and squeal when they see Freddie and I together—well, Spencer mainly does the squealing, but they're both ecstatic. They act as if they knew it would happen eventually, though. I always said Carly knew me before I even knew myself.

Freddie and I still tease each other, but it's cool. Because that's all it is—teasing. And even if we _do_ argue, our cheerleaders—Carly and Spencer—are there to sort everything out. It's true, we are stubborn, but there's nothing a stern motherly (but not psychotic) talking to and spaghetti tacos can't solve.

The day we declared that we were together, Carly had leaned in to stage whisper to me, "I'm so happy for you!" Just the memory of that brings a slow grin to my face. But I'm brought out of my daydreaming as I knock into a former wise wizard, who reaches his arms out to steady me.

"Snap out of that daze, Sam," Principal Franklin says with a smile. "You need to complete your journey unscathed, you know."

My eyes snap wide open. "What?" I ask with a bit of a stutter to my words.

"Your journey," he laughs heartily. "To class. As Robert Frost would say, you've got miles to go before you sleep—or at least a few yards before you reach your English class."

"Oh," I say with a nervous chuckle, while I eye him warily. That was…interesting. "Yeah. Thanks, Principal Franklin."

He waves a hand to dismiss the thought. "It's not an issue, Sam. Now off you go," Ted says as he gives me a gentle push in the right direction.

I continue to class, shaking my head to clear my mind as Freddie embraces me quickly, giving me a light peck on the lips before Ms. Briggs or any of the other faculty can spot it.

Carly smiles widely. She giggles. "You guys really _are_ the cutest thing ever." Carly walks into class, but Freddie stays outside, his arm around my shoulders.

I stifle the blush I feel rising to my cheeks.

Looking to the dork's face, I see he's staring at me and grinning proudly.

I roll my eyes, and shove him off me. "Oh, just get into class, you nerd!" I shout with a laugh.

He's laughing too, as he stumbles into the classroom.

Today we had to pick two poems by an author to read in front of class. They had to be two poems that were relevant to our lives. So, in a move that surprised almost everyone, when it was my turn, and the teacher attempted to skip over me thinking I wouldn't be prepared, I shoved Shannon out of my way, and took out my selected poems.

"This first poem I'm going to be reading is called "Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening," by Robert Frost." My voice seemed to boom over the shocked and silent classroom. I'd never really spoken in front of such a serious crowd before so I sort of swayed in slight nervousness. "I chose this because it really shows the journey I had to go through to become the person I am today." Clearing my throat, I slowly recited the poem, allowing myself to feel and annunciate each word. When I got to the final stanza, I let the poetry flow as I relived every moment from my dream.

When I finished, I realized I had closed my eyes. And a roar of applause met me when I opened them. I smiled lightly, giving a mock curtsey. Despite the fact that I was wearing my normal capris.

The applause continued. "Thank you, but I'm not—" It was deafening and interrupted my speech. "That's nice, but I've still got—" Aaaaand it just kept going. Glaring dangerously, I shouted, "Hey!"

Silence. I knew that would shut them up.

Smiling, I continued. "Now I've got my second poem from Robert Frost, called "The Road Not Taken."" I switched the papers in my hands. "I chose _this_ poem because it kinda sums up my journey and shows where I am now." I settled my eyes on the page and began to read aloud. "'Two roads diverged in a yellow wood…And sorry I could not travel both…And be one traveler, long I stood…And looked down one as far as I could…To where it bent in the undergrowth.'"

I glanced up from the paper to see every pair of eyes on my face. But only two really were truly listening, and I knew that. The others may have been listening to the tone of my voice, but only two were taking in the words I was speaking. And that was Carly—who wore a huge, proud smile on her face—and Freddie, who had an expression of deep concentration on his. My eyes fell back to the second stanza as I tried to stifle the smile that threatened to graze my lips and break the mood.

"'Then took the other, as just as fair…And having perhaps the better claim…Because it was grassy and wanted wear…Though as for that the passing there…Had worn them really about the same.'"

I sure had taken that grassy, unbeaten path. And I'm sure there's not one of you out there that would disagree with that.

"'And both that morning equally lay…In leaves no step had trodden black…Oh, I kept the first for another day! …Yet knowing how way leads on to way…I doubted if I should ever come back.'"

And it was true. I often wondered what would have been different had I given up. Would I have just never opened my eyes again in the real world? Or would it have just passed like a normal dream? There was no way of knowing for sure now, and I certainly didn't want to go back. But it was an interesting thing to think about.

"'I shall be telling this with a sigh…Somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—I took the one less traveled by…And that has made all the difference." Sighing, I ended off with a sure and certain nod of my head.

Again, the applause came, louder than before. And it was comforting. I took in a deep breath as if I were inhaling all of the emotions in the room. It felt extremely nice.

"The poem is all about choices, and how they can affect and change us. And even though we might wonder what would've happened had we chosen the other path—the road not taken—we can never _really_ go back and reach it again. But in the end, the choices we make shape who we are." And as I bowed slightly with my head, I thanked the rest of my class and took my seat.

Freddie beamed and mouthed, "That was really beautiful," to me. A huge smile danced its way onto my face.

Carly leaned forward and whispered, "Sam, you did _amazing_."

I didn't understand why everyone was whispering. I looked back and called, quite loudly, "Thanks, Carls."

When I turned around, I was met with the face of my teacher looming over my desk. I sighed. The outcome was inevitable and obvious.

…

Okay, maybe not _so_ obvious. Shortly after that, I found myself forcefully entered in the school talent show to recite live poetry.

I fought with my teacher tooth and nail to get out of this show, but she wouldn't budge. She did, however, assure me that no matter what the outcome, I would be getting extra credit and would at least just barely pass this term. Which was good. But there was a huge downside to all this—the poem had to be self-written. I am in no way a writer. I may be a _fighter_, but just because the two words rhymed did not mean I was both.

But, sure enough, a week later, I was standing behind the curtain, awaiting my cue to go on stage. My English teacher, Ms. Longerville, had gotten me excused from homework for all other classes so that I could work on my poem (except for Ms. Briggs, who is a complete skunkbag and could never appreciate anything but bad music, Randy Jackson, and suffering.) I'd screened it past Principal Franklin, my mom, and Ms. Longerville herself. Principal Franklin told me it was "superb" and helped me tweak a few things—mainly my spelling; I'm stubborn so I don't often listen to the spell-check. It's usually wrong a lot of the time anyway.

When I passed my writing to Ms. Longerville afterward, she said that it was amazing and couldn't wait to hear me perform it live. She asked me where I had gotten the inspiration for it, but I decided not to tell her the truth—she never would've believed it.

My mom called my poem "complastular." Apparently, we shared our distaste for correctness and normalcy. But who can blame us? Normal is just boring. Well, anyway, after I confirmed that "complastular" was, in fact, a compliment, I beamed. I asked if she would be able to come to the show and she assured me she would, and that I should just drag her out of the house if she seemed like she was in a foul mood. I asked her if she was sure about that but she instantly nodded in confirmation.

So, once my turn came, I stepped out onto the wooden stage. The crowd was overwhelming, but the lighting really distorted my vision so I couldn't really see who was there. I could, however, make out several distinct faces—I saw Gibby and Shane, Rodney (sneaking in the back door; can't miss that afro anywhere), Shannon, sitting stalkerishly behind Freddie, who had his mother at one side of him, and Carly on the other, who had Spencer on her other side. Principal Franklin stood just off the stage, near the piano to the right of the room. Jonah was also there, seemingly fiddling nervously near the back of the room. And of course, there was my mom all the way up, just in front of Carly and Freddie. She had fallen asleep, but upon my appearance, Carly and Freddie gave her a firm but friendly shove, which effectively woke her up.

Nobody may have remembered my dream journey like I did, but just having all those faces out there made me feel strong, like I could take on anything.

Taking a deep breath, I began reciting my sonnet from memory:

"The journey started off in pure dark night  
On the island, shrouded in deep, cold shadows  
Bitter friends quarrel with a hurtful bite  
A harsh storm sends them off to the shallows

I wander, scared, friendless, lost and alone  
'Til two allies appear from out the dark  
Accepting their help, I see I have grown  
And soon to find my friends, off we embark

A heart buried and troubled we soon see  
And the other, separated apart  
For the buried light, I fight 'stead of flee  
Hidden in my being is the lost heart

I sacrifice myself, glow as the sun  
And then I fought for that light, and I won"

Exhaling deeply, a silence passes through the auditorium. And then, suddenly, the whole room erupts in cheer.

I grin brightly as I receive a standing ovation, which was started by Freddie and Carly, who began whistling and chanting.

"Alright, Sam!" Carly shouts, cupping a hand over her mouth to carry the sound of her voice.

"Yeah! Alright!" shouts Freddie.

Bursting from the crowd, Spencer seems to yell louder than the rest in a practiced manner, "That was ridonculous!"

My mom booms something that sounds like, "Gooooooo, Sammeh!"

As I bow, Freddie's voice echoes in my head.

_I never knew she could be so poetic…_

I smile purely and widely. My hand moved to my heart. Sure we still had a lot to learn from each other—we were both very misunderstood people. But, in time, we would. It wouldn't be an exciting relationship if we didn't have to learn _something_.

Life may seem a little less exciting without all the fighting and action, but it didn't feel that way to me. Truly, it felt as if my journey was just beginning—my way led on to way—and I couldn't wait to see what adventures lay ahead of us. Only one thing was for certain.

This time, we'd all go together.

With every single one of us in each other's heart.

--

**AN: And so, we've reached the end of the tale. =) I really, really, really hope you guys enjoyed this. And not just this chapter, but this entire story. I plan on possibly writing an afterward, where I answer some of your questions about the story. So if you have any, please write them along with your review. (Please don't **_**just**_** send me a question in the review—that might be annoying .) If you do not wish to review, but do have a question, please PM me, and I will be sure to include it. **

**Thank you all, sincerely, from the bottom of my heart for reading this. I truly had a blast writing this and loved hearing from each and every one of you. And I will miss that deeply. So, if you want, stay tuned. I have a few things planned to come up next, including a Seddie one-shot, inspired by the music video for "My Life Would Suck Without You" by Kelly Clarkson. **

**Truly, thank you all again!**

**PS. Shortly, I will be posting a "story" called "Poll." It is actually a poll XD In it, you will find around 4 or 5 possible stories. There will be a short summary posted for each possible story. I would like you to check it out, and in a review, please write which story you think I should begin working on! If there's more than one, write which one you'd like me to work on first, please =) Thank you all so much!**

**-Fictions**


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